Young Forever
by StereoxHearts
Summary: The tale of Peter Pan with a Naruto twist. Hinata as Wendy. Naruto as Peter Pan. Sasuke as Captin Hook. Sakura as Tinkerbell. The story will start of the same, but it will definitely end differently. Read and find out!
1. Chapter 1

"Neji! Can't one of your friends come over and do this instead?" Hinata questioned. Her and her little sister Hanabi were standing in the soccer goal in their front lawn. They were both very unfamiliar to playing the game, they've only been there to watch Neji play. He was kicking or 'dribbling' the soccer ball by himself, as if he were showing off.

"No. Now just try and block the ball." Neji told his younger sister. Hinata gulped. The youngest one Hanabi, who was only eight, tugged on her older sister's sleeve.

"Is Neji going to hurt us?" Hanabi asked cutely. Hinata smiled slightly and shook her head.

"I don't think so." Hinata assured her, even though she herself was questioning it as well. "Y-You won't hurt us, right?" Hinata asked.

Neji kept dribbling with ease. "Not if you block the ball." He told them. Hinata felt her stomach flip as well as her knees buckle. She hadn't even graduated from middle school yet and she could be dying here today.

"Hinata," Hanabi said quietly, "I'm scared."

Hinata attempted to keep on a smile, to keep her little sister from being frightened. "Don't worry. Just keep you hands up like this." Hinata placed both her hands in front of her face. Hanabi watched and mimicked her unsurely afterwards.

"Like this?" Hanabi checked. Hinata looked downwards and nodded.

"I'm going." Neji warned them, his tone sounding bored. Hinata put her arms up and braced herself. She looked at Hanabi who was doing the same except her eyes were closed. Hinata took one last look and Neji and nodded. She watched as Neji placed the ball on the ground and stared at the goal. He was analyzing where he wanted to ball to go and how to kick so the ball went there. After a few minutes he started to back up. He took one last look at the net before charging towards the ball.

As he was seconds away from kicking it, Hinata closed her eyes. Praying it would go in without hitting her or her little sister. She heard Neji making contact with the ball and could feel the ball moving closer and closer. It was only seconds but it felt like forever. After a while Hinata heard the ball make another impact, but it wasn't with her. She assumed it was the net and breathed a sigh of relief.

Just then she heard a small whimper from beside her.

"Ow…" It cried in pain.

"Shit!" She heard Neji curse. Hinata's eyes immediately shot open to see Neji running towards her. She looked to the left of her and saw Hanabi sprawled out on the ground like a squashed bug. Her hands covering her face. Hinata immediately fell to the floor besides her sister.

"Hanabi! Are you okay?" She asked frantically, as Neji made his way to the other side of her. "Hanabi."

"It hurts…" She moaned in distress.

"What hurts?" Hinata inquired. "What hurts Hanabi? Neji! This is bad!"

"Just calm down Hinata!" He hushed his younger sister. "Hanabi, what's wrong?"

"My head," Hanabi whined. "It really hurts!" Neji slowly moved Hanabi's hands from across her face to reveal a black eye and a bloody nose.

"Damn it." Neji cursed, examining Hanabi's condition. Hinata gasped at the sight. Her little sister's face was completely covered in blood. "Wait here with her." Neji orded, making his way inside the house, quickly.

"Oh my god," Hinata continued to gasp. "H-Hanabi, you're going to be okay, okay?" Hinata said, not sure who she was really trying to convince, Hanabi or herself. The littlest one continued to moan in pain, causing Hinata's heart-rate to rapidly increase. Every few seconds she would look over at the door for Neji, but he wasn't there.

"H-Hinata…" Hanabi forced out. Hinata gripped Hanabi's small hand into her own.

"I'm h-here Hanabi, I'm here." Hinata let her know.

"Don't… leave me 'kay?" Hanabi said, trying to forced a tiny smile. Hinata smiled back at her sister, but it was still noticeable to how frightened she truly was. Hinata nodded, not wanting to say another word. The sound of a door opening and closing rang in Hinata's ears. She turned to see both their mother and father running frantically towards the door.

"Hanabi sweetheart!" Their mother cried. "Hanabi!"

"Hanabi!" Their father joined in as well. Hinata slowly removed herself from the scene as their parents took her place. She glanced over at the door to see Neji standing there alone. She walked over to him.

"So, how much trouble do you think I'm in?" Neji questioned aloud as Hinata approached him. Hinata looked back at the scene of her sister bleeding on the ground. She turned back to him and shrugged childishly.

"It was an accident, right?" Hinata tried to relieve.

"You think Dad cares whether it was an accident or not?" Neji retorted, causing Hinata to feel sheepish. Their father was always harder on the two of them than on Hanabi. But, to Neji, he was definitely the most difficult with. Hinata thinks it's because he's the eldest, while Neji assumes it's because their dad is just out to get him.

"Well, I think you did the right thing." Hinata said hopefully. Neji turned to her and let a small smile show. He then placed his hand on her head causing to her blink.

"Thanks Hinata." He said, before turning around to let himself inside.

Hinata briefly watched Neji leave, before focusing her attention back towards the other members of her family. Her father was now carrying Hanabi in a bridal style position as her mother seemed to be talking to one of them. Little grunts and groans were audible from the smallest Hyuuga which gave a great deal of relief to Hinata. At least Hanabi knew her surroundings.

Hinata moved out of the way to let her father through. He didn't say a word to her. She glanced quickly at Hanabi who mouthed 'Hi' as she passed her by. Hinata responded with the same thing. As their mother came about, she leaned down towards Hinata.

"Maybe you should go upstairs, Hinata." She said. Hinata stared at her mother and nodded. That was never a good sign in their household, but she listened obediently and headed upstairs to Neji's room.

* * *

Hinata was lying on Neji's bed watching him play video games. There's only two times when Neji plays video games. When he's irritated or when he's bored. Hinata watched as Neji purposely crashed his car into another, knowing that would be suicide for first place.

Hinata watched him play video games so much she could tell what was a smart choice and what was a dumb one.

But she could also tell when Neji's actually trying or when he's just playing for the hell of it.

Though Neji's door was closed Hinata could hear the muffled voices of her parents coming from her own room. They had probably placed Hanabi in there to get some rest, and were now thinking of ways to punish the two of them.

"Neji…" Hinata said quietly, trying to keep her parents of hearing her.

"What?" Neji answered back sharply, but in the same low volume. His eyes stayed glued to his game. Hinata hesitated to speak.

"W-What do you think they're saying?" She stuttered. Her eyes were still focused on Neji, but his were on the television. She waited for a while, though it seemed like he showed no sign of answering. She sat up and headed towards the door. "I'll be back." She told him. Neji gave her a quick glance as she left his room, and turned back to his game as soon as the door shut.

Hinata made her way quietly down the hall. Attempting to stay as light on her toes as possible. The voices of her parents grew louder as she approached the room. She slowly pressed her ear against the door, for a more audible sound and listened.

"Those children get dumber by the day!" Her father's voice sounded through the door. "I swear they don't use the brains they have!"

"Honey, I'm sure they didn't mean it-"

"Of course they didn't mean it!" Her husband interrupted rudely. "But they should've known better. They're not children anymore! Hinata's starting high school soon. It's time they both grew up." He plopped down on Hinata's bed as he kept rubbing the back of his neck, hoping to decrease the tension, but he was just too stressed. His wife smiled lightly as she took his place and messaged his shoulders for him.

She quietly spoke into his ear. "Oh dear, they're trying, you know they are. When you're young you just, sometimes forget the consequences." She reminded him. "Don't be so harsh on them. Especially Neji, he's having a hard time as it is."

"I just don't know anymore." Hiashi continued, "I think it's time Hinata got her own room."

"Her own room?" His wife questioned. That was a random conclusion.

"Hinata's going to be an adult soon." Hiashi told her. "Sharing a room with someone as young as her sister will be a burden on both of them. Hinata's going to need her privacy…"

His wife sighed, refusing to argue with her husband, knowing that somehow he was right. She smiled lightly. "I think that would be best."

From outside the room, a light, breathless 'No' emerged from Hinata's mouth, as turned herself around and headed back towards her brother's room. Light tears streamed down her face. She hadn't been a separate room from Hanabi since the day her little sister was born. This was almost as bad as the time Neji moved into his own room as well.

Hinata re-entered Neji's room, rubbing the tears from her eyes as she walked in. Neji's game system was off, he was now just lying on the bed. Neji glanced over at his younger sister who hadn't moved since she entered the room.

"What?" Neji asked. Hinata sniffled.

"T-They're splitting me and Hanabi up." She chocked out. "I-I broke the p-promise I made to her. I told h-her we'd never be separated."

"Damn it." Neji sighed, sitting up on his bed. "C'mere." He told her. Hinata ran over to Neji, embracing him into a everlasting hug as she relieved her emotions into his chest. "Calm down Hinata, you'll ruin my clothes." He smirked.

Hinata slowly lifted herself away from him. "S-Sorry."

"It'll be fine." Neji assured her. "When I moved out we were still close, right?" Hinata nodded.

"B-But you stopped telling us stories." Hinata reminded him. Neji rolled his eyes.

"Hinata, you're 13. You're too old for stories. That's baby stuff." Neji informed her. Hinata shook her head vigorously.

"N-No!" Hinata told him. "It w-was our thing Neji! I-It was how we bonded…" Hinata's voice grew more silent. "Now who will tell Hanabi stories…?"

"No one." Neji said, laying himself back on his bed, leaving Hinata to comfort herself. "She's too old for stories too."

Hinata frowned and did something completely out of her normal character. She grabbed a pillow off of Neji's bed and smacked him in he face with it. Neji grunted in pain at the moment of the impact and removed the pillow from his head. He was about to say something to his younger sibling but she had already vanished from his room. Instead, the doorway revealed his father. Neji frowned.

"Neji." His father spoke, with a deep tone to his voice. "We need to talk."

* * *

Hinata thoroughly dried her tears before entering her own room. Inside, awaited her mother and Hanabi on Hanabi's bed. Hanabi was lying down under the covers while their mother hovered over her. Their mom was gently stroking Hanabi's hair, though neither were really talking. Hinata wanted to be just like her mother. Gently, kind and care-free.

Hinata's mother noticed her in the doorway. She noted for her to come in, which Hinata obeyed. Hinata sat on her own bed which was about a foot distance away from Hanabi's.

"Hello Hinata." Her mom's voice was as sweet as ever.

"Are you mad?" Hinata asked quietly, afraid to look her mother in the eye.

The woman shook her head. "Not really. We just thought you two would know better." She turned back towards Hanabi who had her eyes closed peacefully. She looked to be asleep.

"I know." Hinata mumbled. "I'm sorry."

Her mother got up and went over to Hinata. She grabbed her hand and held it as she gazed into her daughter's eyes with a light smile on her face. "We know." She said nicely. She placed a kiss upon Hinata's forehead before leaving the two girls alone. "Goodnight Hinata."

Hinata's eyes followed her mother as she exited their room. Her attention then went back towards Hanabi. She looked almost like that princess Sleeping Beauty, from one of the stories they've read. Hinata got up and took the place where her mother had sat on Hanabi's bed.

Hinata watched her sister, unsure of whether she was asleep or not. Her eyes were glued to her sister's face. She noticed Hanabi's eyelids move in a sort of twitch, and assumed it must've been the pain keeping her up.

"Are you okay Hanabi?" Hinata questioned, thinking the twitch was probably from the headache she now received.

Hanabi's eyes opened slowly, as if she had awoken from a deep slumber. A smile immediately appeared across her face. "Yup." She grinned. "Is daddy with Neji?" Hinata's headed nodded slowly. The smile from Hanabi's face slowly faded. "Is Neji mad at me?"

Hinata shook her head. "No. Never." She assured her younger sister.

Hanabi looked down, then back up at her sister. The sorrow on her face remained. "Are you mad at me?"

Hinata smiled, as she removed a piece of hair from Hanabi's face. "That's not possible." She said. Suddenly a glint of light caught Hinata's eye from under Hanabi's bed sheets. She pulled back the covers slowly and it relieved a necklace. A blue crystal-like object in a point-like shape, with a small silver ball on each side. The necklace was completely unfamiliar to her. She removed it from other the covers, showing it to Hanabi as well as giving herself a more visible look at it. "Hanabi, what is this?"

Hanabi eyed her sister curiously. "You mean it's not yours?" Hinata shook her head, not looking away from the necklace. She actually found it most breathtaking.

"No…" Hinata answered, sounding completely hypnotized. "It's beautiful. Is it mother's?"

Hanabi shook her head. "She said it was yours." Hinata gave her sister a lost expression. "Apparently she saw you wearing it before."

Hinata placed her hand around her neck. "I was?" She asked, glancing at her bear collar bone. Hanabi nodded.

"Put it on!" She said cheerfully.

Hinata smiled sheepishly. "I-I don't know."

"Please!" Hanabi pleaded. "I bet it looks really good on you!" Hinata let out a light laugh as she placed the necklace around her neck. She gave a small glance to Hanabi who smiled brightly. "I told you it looks good!" She beamed.

Hinata giggled. She got up and headed towards the mirror to look at the appearance herself. She smiled brightly. The necklace did suit her. The light blue crystal went well with the light lilac-purple tint in her eyes. But where did it come from, and how come she couldn't remember wearing it?

"Hinata?" Hanabi called. Hinata turned to acknowledge her sister. "Story time?" She asked cutely. Hinata nodded.

She felt bad about what happened to Hanabi, and in returned decided to read her favorite story. Peter Pan. A Disney Classic and Hanabi's favorite. Not to mention her first crush.

Hinata picked up the book from the bookshelf across from the foot of Hanabi's bed. She smiled as she picked it out, immediately showing Hanabi the title to receive another smile in return. Hinata then walked over and plopped back down in her original spot on Hanabi's bedside.

"I can't wait until he takes me to Neverland." Hanabi dreamed. Hinata smiled. Ever since Hinata was five years of age she had a fantasy that Peter Pan would take her away to Neverland if she kept believing. Hinata was never one to crush a dream. She herself, knew Peter Pan wasn't real, but as long as Hanabi believed, she would pretend.

"I just hope Father will let you." Hinata smiled.

"Well whether he does or not, I'm going." Hanabi informed her. Hinata nodded, showing her support. "Unlike Wendy, I'd stay with him forever."

"But you might never see, Mother or Father again, or Neji or me." Hinata attempted to rationalize. Though, their conversations before reading Peter Pan usually went like this.

"Well you'd come with me Hinata!" Hanabi explained. Hinata laughed at the thought of those two flying off to 'Neverland' with 'Peter Pan'. "And Neji too! He could marry that Tiger Lily girl, and I'm sure there's a Lost Boy or Indian for you. And with Mother and Father, we'd visit once in a while, I'm sure Peter wouldn't mind."

Hinata nodded. She had obviously thought this out for a while. She was quite confident.

"Well that'd be fun." Hinata agreed. "Just let me meet him first. I want to make sure I like him before you marry him." She teased.

"You will Hinata!" Hanabi grinned brightly. "I know you will! How could you not? He's just so, wonderful…"

Her sister looked so adorable. Day-dreaming about falling in love at her young age. It was truly incredible to watch. "Wonderful, huh?" Hinata played.

"But not like you Hinata." Hanabi assured. "That's why you'd have to come too. We promised we'd never leave each other right?"

Hinata's playful smile drifted off her face. The thought of her father talking about her leaving their room replayed in her mind. Hanabi must have been asleep for that part since she hadn't mentioned anything about it yet. Or maybe it just slipped her mind like it had Hinata's.

"Hinata?" Hanabi called for attention. Hinata's eyes faked a tiny smile as she looked down at her little sister. "Is there something wrong?"

Hinata shook her head. "Just… a bit tired," She lied. Hanabi's eyes immediately shot open.

"Well don't fall asleep now! You haven't even started the story yet!" Hanabi whined. Hinata had to hold back her laughter from the childish act her sister was performing. "Come on! Come on!" She rushed.

"Alright," Hinata said opening to the first page. "_Far into the night sky, past the second star to the right, was Neverland. A place full of magic and wonder. From fierce pirates, to the beautiful mermaids, to the brave Indians and the magic of fairies, lived a wonderful boy. A boy who would never age, nor grow up. A boy named Peter Pan…"

* * *

_

"'_Goodbye Wendy' Peter called from outside the window. As he and Tinkerbell flew up towards the stars and young Wendy watched from the window. Her eyes refused to leave the boy who had given her such adventure that night. 'Goodbye… Peter Pan"_

Hinata sighed as she finished the story. Peter Pan was always one of the longest bedtimes stories to read. She looked over at Hanabi was sleeping peacefully. Hinata smiled as she stroked her little sister's hair with care. She arose from the bed to put the book back on it shelf before changing into her pajamas.

When she went over to the mirror to brush her hair she glanced at the necklace around her neck. She stared at it with great curiosity, completely unaware of how it came about. She gripped it in her hand.

"Maybe I'll ask Mother about it in the morning." She yawned. She rubbed her eyes, to keep her awake long enough to make it back to her bed. She pulled back the sheets as she placed herself inside. She wrapped the covers tightly around herself as she closed her eyes.

The last motion she did before falling into her nightly slumber was grip the blue crystal around her neck. The thought of Hanabi's life with Peter Pan flashed quickly into her mind before it went blank.

If Neverland meant she could stay with Hanabi, it might not be that bad of a place after all.

* * *

**BETA Reader, anyone? Please Read.&.Review.**


	2. Chapter 2

It was late at night and the Hyuuga house was completely quiet. Almost, actually. There was just one restless person about, but he wasn't part of the family, nor did he belong there. A young boy with blonde hair spiky hair. He had no sleeved green shirt with a large collar on it to cover his neck, that matched nicely with his baggy beige pants. He was lightly on his toes as he flew around looking for an entrance to the house as the pink glow that flew around him would occasionally light up his face.

He watched as the pink glow lead him to an opening in the upstairs hallway. The window was partly opened, giving him a promising entrance. He smiled at the pink speck as he opened the window wide enough to allow himself inside. He kept himself hovering in the air so his footsteps wouldn't make any noise.

"Alright Sakura," The boy spoke in a low whisper, "You look over there and I'll look in there." He pointed to a room down the further hallway.

The pink speck flew closely to his face, making him eye to eye with it. Up close, it was actually seen as a small beautiful young girl with pink hair. She had a pink dress on, though it only made it to her mid-thighs. She was quite childish looking, only a few curves here and there, but still very attractive nonetheless.

She nodded at him as she flew into a dark room, only the pink glow that came from her was able to light it up. The boy turned away from that direction and headed into the room on his side.

He opened the door slowly, trying to muffle the sound from it. He first peaked into the room to see two girls sleeping. They looked so identical, but he couldn't get caught up in their appearance right now, he had something important to do.

He let himself in and looked around the room, moving things quietly. He open a drawer and started going through that. Nothing. He turned to the bookshelf, removing a few books and throwing them on the floor. Not there either.

"Where is it?" He said looking around the room. "Where-?"

Suddenly one of the girls started to fidget. Sounds were coming from her mouth. The boy stared at her questionably, hoping he hadn't woken her. He flew over towards her, hovering directly above her. She was smiling in her sleep, which made the boy want to smile to.

"What's she thinking about?" The boy inquired to himself. The girl the tossed herself over, causing the boy to reflex and cover his mouth. He waited a few moments as the girl remained still before sighing for relief. Just then he caught sight of her neck. His gaze grew more intense as he stared harder. It glistened lightly, making it able for him to make out the necklace.

"There it is!" He grinned. He looked at the girl's face. He had to do this without waking her. He reached his hand in but kept glancing back at the young girl's face to make sure she hadn't awoke. As he got closer and closer to her he felt more anxious every second. Cautiously, he picked up the string, and slowly removed the item from the back of her head. It got stuck though. He tugged it gently, causing Hinata to flip herself over. He grimaced, but continued the procedure.

He removed the string completely from around her neck, but the crystal itself, was still placed in her hands. The boy bit his lips as he went in to slowly removed her hands. As soon as the tip of his finger touched hers, Hinata's eyes immediately shot open.

The two made eye contact for a brief moment. Her eyes looked dazed as his looked frightened. As her eyes began to fully focus, she was able to make out the blonde boy's figure, to which her eyes widened and her mouth opened. Before she even had a chance to scream, the boy covered her mouth causing her to muffle words as she attempted to remove his hands from her face.

"Shh!" The boy told her. But the girl continue to fight and speak. "I'm not letting go until you promise to shhh!" He reasoned, right in her face. Hinata nodded slowly as the boy hesitantly removed his hands from her mouth.

"Who-" The boy hushed her loud tone once again. Hinata's mouthed 'Sorry' to him before continuing. "Who are you?" She whispered.

The boy smiled proudly. "The name's Naruto Uzumaki!" He grinned.

Hinata looked at him funny, until she realized the he wasn't on her bed, but floating above it. She rubbed her eyes to make sure she wasn't going crazy but he continued to float no matter how many times she'd rub them. The boy named Naruto looked at her funny.

"You okay?" He questioned.

"Are you… flying?" Hinata almost choked.

"Huh?" Naruto said, looking down at the bed below him. He smiled as he carelessly scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, I guess I am."

Hinata sat up straight, removing the covers from her body as she crawled out of them, but remained on her bed. "H-How is that possible?" She questioned, as she continued to examine Naruto.

Naruto shrugged. "It's easy." He told her. "Want me to teach you?

"C-Could you do that?"

"Sure! Stand up!" Naruto said. Hinata placed her feet on top of her bed. Standing up slowly to reach the same eye level as the boy the flew before her. He held out his hands. "Now take my hands." He ordered. Hinata nodded and obeyed. The boy smiled at her. "Hold on."

Hinata nodded, completely shocked. She felt her body get lighter and her feet slowly lift off the ground. She looked down to see that her feet were no longer touching the bed. She kicked them back and forth as proof, not even her toes were in contact with the ground. She was shocked.

"I'm flying! I'm flying!" She cheered. Hinata was a giddy as a school girl at that moment. She looked at boy who was smiling at her, causing her to blush. His face then turned to a more serious and concern appearance as he brought them both back down towards the bed.

"That was amazing…" She said quietly, afraid to look at him.

"Is it?" He asked. She nodded, the red slowly fading away from her face. "It's fun, I guess." He smiled. Hinata looked back at him. He was probably the most attractive boy she had ever seen. And she got to fly with him. It was like a fantasy, like a dream.

She turned her gaze back down to see that they were still holding hands. She quickly removed her palms, leaving the boy dumbfounded. Hinata then noticed the necklace, lying on her bed. It wasn't on her neck anymore. She looked at him, but he was gazing around the room. She bent down.

Was he trying to remove it? She thought as she picked it up.

"Is this yours?" She asked.

Naruto looked at it. "Yeah," He answered. Hinata handed it to him, and watched as he placed it around his own neck.

"If you don't mind me asking, what was it doing here?"

"I guess I dropped it the last time I was here." Naruto responded, checking out his necklace as if he were looking for damages or problems before putting it around his neck.

"Y-You've b-been here before?" Hinata asked, astounded. She had never seen him before; nor has she ever heard of him, before tonight that is.

"Sure," He said, as he sat on Hinata's bed, Indian style. "Lots of times." Hinata sat down on her knees in front of him.

"W-Why?" Hinata continued to question.

"To listen to the stories." Naruto answered nonchalantly.

"Stories?"

Naruto nodded. "The ones you tell that girl over there." He said, motioning towards Hanabi. Hinata glanced at her quickly, but couldn't help but keep her eyes on Naruto.

"H-How long have you been listening to my stories?"

"Since before that boy left."

"That's been almost three years!" Hinata gasped.

Naruto looked bored, like had no idea how long that's been. "Okay." He shrugged. He then started picking at his feet as if he were removing something. Hinata was too much in her own thoughts to even notice.

"Why my stories?" Hinata inquired. "Why me?"

Naruto smiled at her. He looked so much more attractive, to Hinata, when he smiled. "You're the best storyteller in Japan." He grinned.

"I-I am?" She flushed.

"Sure are!" Naruto's smile continued to light up the room, at least in Hinata's eyes. She blushed, hoping the darkness would cover her face. It was at that moment she remembered her father's words.

She sighed a small sigh. "Thank you," She said quietly. Naruto leaned it a bit more so he could hear a more audible voice from her. "B-But maybe it's time your start looking for a new storyteller." She told him. She looked up and noticed how close he was and leaned back a little. He mimicked her motions but with a lost expression.

"Why?" He asked, scratching his head.

Hinata looked down again. "Because me and Hanabi are getting too old for stories." She muttered, remembering her brother's words this time.

"Why?" Naruto repeated.

"I guess that's just what happens when you grow up." Hinata replied.

Naruto immediately flew up from his position on the bed, floating in the air. His face was scrunched together with a sorrowful frown to accompany it. "Why would anyone want to grow up anyway?" He grunted.

Hinata sheepishly smiled at him. "You don't really have a choice… Naruto." She twiddled her fingers together since that was the first time she had even spoken his name. He obviously hadn't noticed that himself though, because he just continued to speak.

"But you do!" He exclaimed to her. Hinata tilted her head to the side, the world wide common expression of confusion. Naruto grinned right in her face, only inches apart. "Come with me to Neverland!" He said excitedly.

Hinata's eyes widened. "Neverland?" She repeated. "T-That place really exists?"

Naruto nodded. "Yeah!"

"And Peter Pan?" Hinata continued, "Does he exist too?"

Naruto's lips shifted to the side. "I don't think so. After you read that story about him, we looked everywhere. But… no sign of him."

"But, Neverland exists?" Hinata asked again.

Naruto beamed. He knew he had this girl hooked. "Yes ma'am!" He answered. "We got mermaids, Indians, pirates, ninjas, fairies…" The boy continued to talk, but Hinata's mind blocked the rest of the words out.

"Mermaids…" She smiled, looking almost as dreamily as her little sister had looked before. Neverland was real, Hanabi would've been- Hanabi! Hinata turned to look over at her younger sibling. She was still sound asleep in her bed. She then turned her attention to the blonde boy who was still yapping away. "But… Hanabi…" Hinata spoke.

"Huh?" Naruto stared at Hinata and followed her gaze over to the other female in the room. Naruto scratched his chin for a moment, to over express the fact that he was thinking. He then shrugged with a smile.

"She can come too."

Hinata's lips curled upward. "And Neji?"

"Neji?"

Hinata nodded. "My brother, the boy." Hinata attempted to refresh his memory, but he still looked confused. "The one who moved out." She noticed a change in Naruto's eyes, she assumed he remembered. "We can't leave him here alone, he'll need us."

Naruto crossed his arms, he wasn't planning on all this. "W-Well… uh…"

Hinata then got up out of bed and headed over to the dresser with the large oval mirror. She reached into a drawer and grabbed a notepad and a purple glitter pen. "I have to leave my Mother a note."

"A note?" Naruto questioned, as he floated over to her and watched her write over her shoulder. "What for?"

Hinata talked as she continued to write. "So she won't be worried when she's notices we're gone." Naruto continued to watch as Hinata finished up the letter. His eyes caught something peculiar in the note, and pointed it out to her.

"What are those?" He asked. Hinata looked down to read the 'x' and 'o' that she had placed besides her name.

"Those stand for hugs and kisses." Hinata explained. She turned around to face him, he was awfully close again. She blushed and he backed away.

"What are hugs?" He asked questionably. Hinata looked at him a bit dumbfounded. Surely he would know, but suppose he didn't. Still, she was never asked a question like that before.

"Um," She hesitated. She was going to have to actually think before she explained it. "I-I guess it's just, you wrap your arms around another person's body." She explained. Her words came as she thought of them mentally.

Naruto nodded. He then flew over to Hinata and wrapped his arms around her body. The glow of scarlet from Hinata's cheeks would've beat Rudolph's nose. Naruto then smiled as he backed off.

"Like that?" He asked. Hinata's head bobbed up and down like a robot. She was completely stiff after that hug. It was nice and warm. Like the way she saw his personality, nice and warm.

"Now, what's a kiss?" Naruto asked.

Hinata's body grew more tense, if at all possible. "A-A kiss?" She repeated. Naruto nodded, his eyes remained locked onto hers causing her to look away in embarrassment. "W-Well, a kiss is um… something y-you do with someone y-you really like a lot."

Naruto nodded. "Well, I like you." Naruto told her. Hinata stared up at him. There was a tiny sparkle Hinata was able to make out in Naruto's eyes. They're just met, there was no way he could've grown to like her that fast. She believed that he was just toying with her.

"You do?" Hinata asked, unintentionally being extremely cute. Naruto's head nodded, scratching the back of it. He seemed… nervous? She smiled lightly, a tiny part of her hoped he was telling the truth.

"Do you like me?" Naruto asked. Hinata bit her lip but forced her head to nod. She looked at him like he was angel sent from above. "Could you, um, show me what a kiss is then?" He asked moving closer.

Hinata could've passed out, but after flying, this whole thing just seemed like a fairy tale to her. Hinata's head bopped up and down once again as she too, this time, took a step closer. Naruto continued to meet her and the two were only inches apart. Hinata looked into his large blue eyes. Breathtaking. She blushed.

"N-Naruto." Hinata said. "C-Could you close your eyes?" She asked.

Naruto arched an eyebrow. "But then I won't get to see the kiss." Naruto retorted.

Kiss. Hinata was getting really light headed. "I-It's, um, n-not something y-you um… it's s-something y-you f-feel." Naruto shrugged, showing signs of giving up, and closed his eyes. Hinata took a deep breath as she placed her small hands on his shoulders. They were quite broad for a boy as young as him. She stood on her tip-toes as she leaned in, hesitantly.

Her first kiss and it was going to someone she just met. It was so, un-her. But still, it felt like that's how it was meant to be. She puckered her lips, closed her eyes, and leaned further.

"Hinata!" A loud yelp came from down the hall. Both children opened their eyes. Naruto was amazed to see how close Hinata was to himself, and her lips were oddly puckered. Hinata backed off, and rubbed her face, trying to remove the reddish color she knew were on her cheeks.

"Hinata!" The voice came again but louder. Hinata recognized that sound to be Neji. If Neji caught her in here with a boy it would be all over. She looked around for a place to hide the blonde beauty.

"Quick! Hide under the bed!" She whispered at him. Naruto didn't even protest, since the voice had startled him as well. He flew under the bed with great speed and hid there. He beaked his head out a bit so he could only see the feet and legs of the young girl.

The door opened and Hinata looked over to see Neji holding some sort of light in a jar. Yet, it glowed a pink glow. Hinata went over to examine it, but Neji met her halfway.

"Hello Neji." She greeted.

Neji looked at her sternly. "Don't. Scream." He warned her, though it sounded more like a threat. Hinata nodded, as Neji showed her the cause for the pink glow. Hinata leaned towards it. It was a little woman. She was beautiful, and she glowed pink. She had wings and she was releasing little hints of dust at the bottom of the jar. Her face looked angry as she fiercely banged on the glass of the jar. "I think it's some sort of bug."

"A fairy…" Hinata smiled brightly. This night was truly magical indeed. Neji stared at her as if she was insane.

"A fairy?" Neji snorted. Hinata nodded, and continued to watch her fight for her freedom. "Hinata, fairies don't-"

"NOOOO!" Naruto said, flying from under the bed. He pushed Neji against, startling Hinata. As a result, Neji dropped the jar, breaking it into many pieces and freeing the fairy from her cell. "Don't say that! They'll die!" Naruto told him. Neji frowned.

"Get off of me!" He said, attempting to punch Naruto in the face. But Naruto dodged his attack, and flew above him. "What the-?" Neji watched as Naruto floated himself gently to the ground. "Who are you? What are you?"

"Naruto Uzu-"

"Hinata why is he in your room?" Neji said, completely ignoring the answer to the question he previously asked. He stared at his younger sister with an unsatisfying glare.

"Uh… Neji, he came to take us to Neverland?" Hinata answered, unsure of her own words.

"Neverland? That fairytale?"

Naruto frown. "It's not a fairy tale. And don't worry about it because you're not invited." Naruto retorted, sticking his tongue out childishly. Neji's glare deepened at the young boy. Hinata watched them both, not sure what to do. Either way the outcome seemed bad.

"You think I'm going to let my little sister go somewhere, with a strange boy, who can fly?" Neji asked. Naruto grinned and nodded.

"Yep."

Neji then looked back at his younger sister who was fiddling with her fingers. "Did you drug me?" Neji asked her. Hinata covered her mouth, shocked that Neji would ever suspect such a thing.

Naruto eyed the two. "Drug you?" He repeated. Just then, the fairy flew up to his face. She pointed the necklace that remained around his neck. Naruto smiled. "Yeah, I found it." He continued to mingle with the fairy, while the other two were clueless to what she was saying. "It was with that girl over there. Hinata."

Sakura looked over at Hinata and gave a rude, stank look. Hinata was a bit taken back, but how falsely accused fairies were about being so sweet. Sakura flew over to Hinata, stared her right in the eyes and flicked her in the nose.

"Ouch." Hinata cried quietly, holding her nose together. Sakura laughed whole-heartedly as she flew herself back to Naruto. She looked at him with great joy and pleasure but Naruto responded with a displeased expression of his own. His glare made her frown cutely.

"Sakura, that wasn't nice." Naruto said flying over to Hinata. Her hands were still covering her nose. Naruto removed them from her face slowly, carefully. "Are you okay?" He asked, staring at her nose for any marks or bruises or blood. Hinata nodded.

Sakura's pink glow began to turn red. She was about to make her way over to Hinata to teach her another lesson, but Neji rushed over and intervened himself between his sister and Naruto. He glared at Naruto violently as he spoke to Hinata.

"I'm not letting you go to Neverland." He told her, keeping his glare on Naruto, who was frowning in return. Sakura nodded sternly from the background, siding with the long-haired boy.

"But Neji-"

"No." He said, turning to her now. He glanced back at Naruto as he slowly led Hinata away from him. Naruto grimaced, obviously annoyed. Neji turned to look at his sister's upset face, but still stayed with his word. "End of discussion." He told her firmly.

Hinata looked down at her feet, then back at Naruto. He flew a bit off the ground to get a better look at Hinata since Neji was blocking his gaze. He, too, looked a bit upset. Hinata sighed loudly as she gazed toward Hanabi, still sound asleep in her bed. The conversation about going to Neverland replayed over and over in her head. Hinata's eyes caught Neji's.

"I'm going." She said bluntly.

"No, you're not." Neji responded.

"Neji." Hinata said, sounding bolder. "I want to go."

"I won't allow it." He replied. "You're-"

"Stop acting like Father!" Hinata said, even louder. She soon covered her mouth, for she knew she had said too much. She looked at Neji, she had never seen him so shocked before. Neji hated their Father, and she told him he was just like him. She knew that was so wrong of her to say. "I-I'm sorry." She apologized, removing her hands slowly from her embarrassed self. She felt so guilty. "I didn't, I mean… s-sorry…"

Neji's mouth fidgeted with an irritated expression to match. "If you want to go, go." He told her. "I don't care anymore."

"N-Neji…" She tried to plea, but he already made his way out the door, shutting it behind himself. She knew if it wasn't nighttime, he would've slammed it for everyone to hear. He was quite expressive when it came to his bad temper.

Hinata felt awful, as she mentally kept questioning what was wrong with her tonight. Naruto flew over with compassion in both his eyes and his heart. He stood in front of Hinata and placed his hands on both her shoulders, as her head continued to hang low.

"You alright Hinata?" He asked. Hinata's hand brushed her right eye. She nodded. Sakura gagged from afar.

"Yes, thank you." Her voice was shaky and quite. It almost made Naruto feel like doing the same.

"Are you sure you still want to go?" He continued. He wanted her to, but due to the obvious fight it just caused, he assumed it might be better for them all to just stay there.

Hinata looked up at him. His eyes saddened as he saw the hints of water that filled them. She smiled still. "I have to." She informed him. She looked back at her little sister once more. "For Hanabi."

Naruto glanced at the little child who was still sleeping in her bed and placed a smile on his face. He nodded, before looking back at Hinata. "Okay," He sighed, still unsure of whether the decision she made was correct, but nevertheless, he was bringing a new friend back with him to Neverland. "Let's get going." He said, flying towards the window.

"Should I wake her?" Hinata asked, motioning towards Hanabi. Naruto flew over to the sleepy-headed one. He examined her for a bit, before lifting her up carefully, onto his back. "N-Naruto, I don't-"

"Naw," He answered. "I'll just fly her on my back, it'll be easier on Sakura too."

"Easier on Sakura?" Hinata perplexed.

Naruto grinned as he positioned Hanabi comfortable on him, as if he were giving her a piggy back ride. "You've read the story right?" Naruto reminded her, as he flew around the room, giving himself a test drive. "To go to Neverland, you gotta fly." He then placed himself in front of Hinata. "It takes faith, trust, and-"

"And pixie dust," Hinata recited perfectly. Naruto nodded with a smile.

"Or Sakura dust," He joked.

He grabbed the floating fairy in his hand, without her own consent, and blew the pink dust from the fairy onto Hinata. Hinata fidgeted as the dust tickled her pale skin. She looked at her body as the pink dust started dissolving inside her skin, making her instantly feel lighter.

"Now," Naruto said, grabbing Hinata's hands. The touch of his hand instantly made her feel more light than she'd already become. "Think happy thoughts." He told her.

Hinata closed her eyes. Her thoughts filled with the beauty of Neverland she had imagined for her self. The beautiful crystal blue waters from the mermaid lagoon, the incredible dances performed by the Indian tribes, the bright glimmer of the fairies lighting up in the dark, the loud laughter of the Lost Boys playing together. How surreal it all seemed.

"Hinata…" Naruto whispered quietly. Hinata opened her eyes. Naruto's hands were no longer attached to hers. She was alone, and the best part was she was flying.

"I'm flying?" Hinata was so surprised, she questioned it herself. She looked up at Naruto who nodded. Hinata's smile grew more bright. "I'm flying!" She said, twirling herself around with great grace as laughter emerged from her lips.

Naruto couldn't help but shape his lips upward. The girl seemed so much brighter than she did a few minutes ago. Usually, flying meant nothing to him, but this moment reminded him of when his feet first lifted off the ground. He watched Hinata swoop and soar through the air with glee. Laughing with herself. He just found it fun to watch, until his sidekick fairy started making noise in his ear.

"Huh?" Naruto grunted. The fairy looked furious as she pointed out towards the window. Naruto sighed, with a sideways pout. "Okay, we're leaving, we're leaving." He assured the pink twinkle, following her out the window. "You ready Hinata?" The blonde child called out to her.

"Coming!" Hinata said, following after Naruto. She watched Naruto fly out the window and was about to follow when the sound of her door opening filled her ear. Hinata's head turned abruptly, hoping it wasn't one of her parents. It was Neji.

"Hold on!" He said, putting on some old sneakers. He had a backpack on his back that looked rather full, and he had changed out of his pajamas. Hinata's eyes lit up.

"Neji!" She said, flying over to her brother. Naruto peaked through the window to see what was taking him so long. "Naruto, Neji's coming!" She cheered.

Naruto was hesitant a first, but smirked. "So you're coming after all?" Naruto said, sounding sly.

Neji scoffed. "I told you, I won't let my sisters go to Neverland with some strange boy," he reminded the blonde kid. Naruto let out a little chuckle, as Hinata joined in as well. Neji tied to last not on his shoelace and looked up at his flying sister. "You can fly too now?" Neji eyes widened.

Hinata shook her head vigorously. "Mhm." She said. She grabbed her brother's hand and led him to the window where Naruto and Sakura waited. Hinata flew outside besides her new found friend and nodded.

Naruto nodded back and motioned towards Sakura. "Give him all you got, Sakura."

Sakura rolled her eyes. She didn't want either of them to come, but she figured Neji wouldn't allow Naruto and Hinata to become so close either. He could be helpful to her. She zapped Neji with loads of glittery powder, though it caught him off guard. Some went into unexpected places causing Neji to cough with discomfort.

"What is this?" Neji asked, scratching some of the dust off from his scalp. "Powder?"

"It's pixie dust." Naruto explained to him. "It'll make you fly."

A snort emerged from Neji's chest. "Yeah, right." Though, he did feel a bit lighter, but he wasn't one to admit anything. "If this stuff could make me - whoa!" Neji glanced below to see his feet of the ground and in the air. Hinata giggled as Naruto gave him a triumphant smirk, which caused Neji to sigh. "Whatever, I don't care anymore. Let's just go."

"If you say so." Naruto shrugged. "Follow me." Naruto flew higher up towards the sky, with Sakura's bright pink light right behind him. Shortly after, Hinata followed while Neji brought up the rear. Naruto turned back to see how the other two were holding up, but they were a good distance behind him. He frowned. It would take them forever.

"You guys keeping up?" Naruto hinted. Hinata faces looked a bit perturbed as she tried to speed herself up. Neji glared, feeling that he was being mocked by the boy.

"We're new at this." Neji reminded him. "Give us a damn minute."

Naruto frowned, as he slowed down to purposely let the other two catch up. As they finally made it close to him, Naruto grinned with an idea in his brain.

He held his hand out towards Hinata. "Grab my hand." He told her. Hinata nodded and did as she was told. "Now grab on to his. I'll speed us through." Hinata nodded again, showing that she understood. She twisted her body and held her hand out to Neji, who grabbed in instinctively. "Don't let go!" Naruto laughed. And in only seconds the sped off.

Hinata and Neji tightened their grip as the flew through the sky. The wind was so forceful on their ears they couldn't hear anything besides Naruto's muffled laughter. They eyes were forced shut, so they had no idea what was going on. They just put their trust in the young lad, some more than others.

They moved so quickly through the night sky, to the naked eye they looked like a big, bright shooting star.

* * *

**Beta Reader anyone? Please, Read.&.Review**


	3. Chapter 3

Still trailing through the night sky, the siblings were now in an atmosphere that it was comfortable enough for them to fly on their own without the help of Naruto. They managed to keep up enough behind him that Naruto hadn't any need to look back for them anymore. And though Neji was keeping his eyes on Hinata, Hinata's vision was locked on the scenery around her. She was closer to the stars than she had ever been before. It was unbelievable. Who knew flying through the night sky with a mysterious boy could be so wonderful? This was truly an unforgettable experience, by far.

"Hinata," Neji called from behind her. She turned to head as Neji made his way by her side. His look was quite serious. "When exactly do you plan on going home?" His tone remained the same as before the left the house.

Hinata looked at her brother with disappointed eyes. They hadn't even arrived yet and he's already thinking about home. How was that even possible? "But Neji," Her voice upset, "We haven't even gotten there yet."

"Hinata." His tone was sharp. "We can't stay here, we have a home and it's nowhere near where we're going."

Hinata's eyes locked onto his. Her look, even though her face remained young and cute, it was easy to see the seriousness in her eyes. "A home should be a warm, happy place." She said. "When's the last time we've all been happy together." Her voice squeaked, forcing back the lump in her throat.

Naruto glanced back to see the Hyuuga brother and sister talking. His eyes landed instinctively on Hinata, her expression looked upset and unhappy. It made him worry. What were they talking about, he wondered? He saw Neji try to console her, but still she maintained that face. He turned back around to give them some privacy, repositioning the young girl that he carried on his back.

He grinned. "You're not as light as you look." Naruto told the sleeping child.

It was then the little pink fairy motioned for Naruto's attention. "What is it Sakura?" She smiled as she eagerly pointed below them to the island that they both called home. Naruto's face lit up immediately, as he spun himself around and headed towards the siblings leaving Sakura alone. She watched Naruto go and frowned as he paid no attention to her. Sakura angrily followed Naruto's lead, struggling to keep up behind the young blond boy.

"Hinata, that's not-"

"Hinata!" Naruto's voice dared to interrupt Neji's. Both sets of lightly shaded eyes watched as Naruto approached them. He soon grabbed Hinata's hand causing her cheeks to heat up. "Come, I wanna show you something." He grinned. Without waiting for a reply from the young maiden he tightened his grip on her hand and sped her away.

Neji continued solo, alone and annoyed at him. Sakura, who had finally arrived, was brushed past by the urgency in Naruto's flight. She looked back to see that he was giving special attention to that girl once again and rolled her eyes before muttering a few unpleasant words to herself. Neji, who was close enough, commented on her remarks. "Tell me about it." Though he still didn't understand the tongue in which Sakura spoke, he understood that she wasn't too pleased about them being together either.

Naruto brought her over to a place with a clear view of what's below. Hinata kept her eyes on him completely confused, but before she started to speak, Naruto pointed towards the ground below them. Hinata followed his finger and her face completely falls.

The beautiful dark blue waters with reflections of the night sky amazingly complimented the enchanting appearance of the island as the moon's light shown off of it. The waterfall glistened off the side of the island as little hints of light flickered around its perimeter.

"Is this Neverland?" Hinata managed to speak, still refusing to remove her eyes from the sight.

"Yup!" Naruto grinned. "Cool, huh?"

"It's beautiful," She gasped, as her eyes continue to scan around below her. While gazing over the sea that surrounded the island, her eyes came in contact with a familiar object. "Naruto," She asked, having him turn to her. "Is that a pirate ship?"

Naruto looked at Hinata's eyes and followed them downward. He laid his eyes on the ship himself, which caused an uneasy tension in his stomach. He instinctively squeezed Hinata's hand. Her eyes went to him, but his were too focused on that ship. It began to worry Hinata, and she would've spoken up if Naruto hadn't beaten her too it.

"We have to hurry." He told her as he began to pick up his speed. Hinata, forcefully, followed. She looked back to see Neji trying to hurry behind them but little by little he was getting further and further away.

"N-Naruto wait, Neji!" She said, looking back and forth between the two boys. Naruto looked back to see that Neji was a decent distance away from the two so he slowed his pace down. They both faced the direction where Neji and Sakura were coming from. The two waited as the exhausted duo arrived. Neji was breathing deeply and Sakura managed to get to Naruto's shoulder before settling down to rest.

"Are you alright?" Hinata asked, sticking her hand out to aid Neji. He glared at Naruto, still taking breaths as deep as before.

"What the he-" Neji was interrupted by his body begging for air. He continued with his deep breaths as Naruto and Hinata looked at him a little worried. After a couple of breaths and few coughs, Neji's composure came back to him. "What are you running from?"

Naruto looked over at Sakura who gave him a somewhat concern look. Naruto shrugged and smiled. "You caught me." He grinned as he laughed. "I was trying to ditch you."

Neji grabbed Hinata's hand as he pulled her closer to him. "I don't like you." He grimaced, lowering his gaze. Hinata bit her lip as she glanced between a smiling Naruto and an angered Neji. When she looked back at Naruto once more he winked at her before traveling onward with Sakura on his shoulder and Hanabi on his back.

Hinata watched and slowly started trailing behind him. Neji frowned as he followed after his younger sister. The group made their way towards the center of the island.

* * *

"What is it?" Neji gave the 'thing' in front of him a questionable look.

Naruto, Hinata and Neji, along with Sakura were all back on the ground safe and sound. They were currently standing in front of what appeared to be the remains of a tree in a terrible storm of some sort or something like it. It was poorly cut down, so the act of Mother Nature was the more just cause. It had a door, but the stub of tree that remained was nowhere wide enough and barely tall enough for a living space.

"Our home," Naruto said, turning to Sakura who nodded her head alongside him.

Neji glanced at him then back at the tree. "You live in a tree…?"

Hinata frowned at the rudeness of her older brother and turned to Naruto. "I think it's great." She complimented, even though secretly she too questioned how one could live in a place like this.

Naruto smiled. "Thanks Hinata."

Neji headed for the door. "Let's hope it looks better on the inside." He humored himself. He placed his grip on the handle, twisted and pulled. The door opened, but the inside was pitched black. He looked around the tiny area space with great confusion. "You live here?" He questioned again.

A snicker came from the fairy and the magical boy. Hinata looked at them oddly. Naruto pressed his index finger to his lips, as a sign of telling her to be quiet. She obeyed. Naruto handed the sleeping child off to Hinata and turned to face Neji. She watched Naruto raise himself up from the ground and fly over to Neji quietly and unnoticed.

"Seriously... what gives? Wha-!" Neji's weighted was immediately pushed forward by the touch of Naruto's hand, causing him to fall forward head first into the hole that hidden the blackness. The scream of Neji's voice echoed throughout the entire tree while the loud laughter of Naruto and the muted version of Sakura's were joined in on the noise. Hinata immediately ran over to the hole and spoke.

"Neji!" She called down the hole. "Neji, are you alright?" She turned to Naruto with a terrified look. To which Naruto only responded with a grin of his own.

"Okay," Naruto giggled, trying to calm down. "It's your turn Hinata."

"W-What?" Hinata gawked. Naruto grabbed Hanabi from Hinata's arms and held her bridal style.

"Go on," He encouraged her. "Don't worry, it's fun."

Hinata looked at Naruto, and then back at the black darkness. She shut her eyes and took a deep breath. It was no secret that she was frightened. She bit her lip as she glanced back at Naruto. Her eyes widened, he was examining her. The way his eyes scanned her made her even more self-conscious. He took a step forward toward. Hinata turned herself around as a reaction and continued to look inside the hole.

"Hey Hinata," Naruto's voice spoke behind her. She didn't turn around. "If you're scared, I'll go we can go together."

Hinata spun around so fast, her hair caught the breeze. She met Naruto's sincere eyes alongside his whitened smile. "O-Okay…" She smiled sheepishly back. Naruto smiled as he removed the girl from his back and handed her off to Hinata. "Um, how is this going to work?"

"Easy!" Naruto assured. "Sit by the edge and hold her on your lap." Hinata nodded, and sat on the edge of the hole. Her arms were wrapped tightly around Hanabi, as the young child was placed on Hinata's lap. Naruto watched before heading over to place himself. He watched the way Hinata positioned her arms around Hanabi and without warning mimicked the image on Hinata. Hinata jumped at his touch, but let his arms make their way around his waist. Still, she couldn't help but blush.

Naruto snickered. "Hinata, you're perfect!"

Hinata turned to face him, but seeing how close his face was she turned back around immediately. Her cheeks darkened, embarrassed. "I-I am?"

Naruto's hands began to tighten around her waist. "You fit perfectly in my arms! You're like the perfect size."

"T-Thank you…?" Hinata responded.

Naruto nodded, when suddenly a realization hit him. "Hey Hinata, isn't this kind of like that hug thing you showed me today?" Naruto asked.

Hinata eyes shifted down towards her waist. The sun kissed arms of the boy were wrapped around her. Though it wasn't a proper hug, in some way it was. "I guess…"

"Ready to go?" Naruto asked. Hinata's eyes looked down at the dark pit below her. "I bet Neji's waiting for us." Hinata nodded, but the knot in her stomach remained. Naruto leaned his head forward a bit to see Hinata's face, still looking as frightened as it did before. "Maybe it'll help if you close your eyes." Naruto suggested.

Hinata nodded. "Okay." She shut her eyes, but her heart began to pound. So hard in fact that Naruto could feel it as he held her.

"Whoa… your heart's really pounding…" Naruto said quietly, still Hinata could hear his words as she gripped Hanabi tighter. Naruto smiled. He grabbed Hinata tightly and held her up against his body. The warmth of his touch calmed Hinata down only a little, but at least it was something. "Don't worry," He assured her. "I'll protect you." Hinata smiled and Naruto sighed.

"Okay! On the count of three," Naruto told her. Hinata nodded. "One," Hinata then felt Naruto's weight push up against her and force her completely off the edge. They were falling. The knot in Hinata's stomach tightened as she gripped Hanabi with all her might. Normally one would scream but Hinata's stomach was so tight and her heart pounding so hard that she couldn't even attempt to make a sound. She opened her eyes for a split second only to continue to see darkness. In the background she heard the joyous, boisterous laughter from Naruto. She immediately shut them as gravity continued to pull her down. Her throat choked up as she tried to gain courage for herself, but then her butt hit something soft.

She was no longer falling or moving in general. Was she dead? She couldn't be; she could still hear Naruto's breath behind her, as well as an array of new, younger voices joining in. She opened her eyes and loosened her grip around Hanabi to see Neji arguing with a small boy and girl. She glanced around to see that she had landed on a soft pile of leaves, and she was in a spacious, colorful room with chairs, hammocks, curtain doors and more.

Feeling and hearing the shifting of the leaves Hinata turned around to watch Naruto get up from the pile. He took Hanabi from her arms and placed her on his back once again. "Mind if I put her to bed?" Naruto asked, offering her hand. Hinata nodded as she accepted Naruto's gestured and help herself up with it. She stood there silently as Naruto headed over to one of the doorways that were covered by red curtains. Suddenly, Naruto was intercepted by the young red haired girl with huge ribbon pig tails that defied gravity at the tops of her head. Her facial structured had rosy cheeks and huge black eyes. The bottom half of her legs were covered up but white clothing. He wore a green dress so short that it reached the top half of her thighs, but underneath were small brown shorts keeping her from exposure. Her wrists were decorated with stones, as if it were a bracelet, and on the other it look like flowers tied together. She grabbed Naruto's arms given him an upset look.

"Naruto, he's mean." The girl whined, pointing to Neji. Naruto looked over at him. Neji was currently in an argument with another boy with brown spikey hair and goggles around his hair line. Around his neck was the black scarf, which accompanied his head sleeveless shirt. His pants were long, but baggy and just like the girl, his feet her bare.

Naruto smiled at the little girl. "Don't worry Moegi, he's just a grouch." He told her. Moegi nodded as another boy approached them, while wiping his nose on his sleep. He wore glasses, had brown hair that hung a bit over his face and looked a little weaker than the others. He had a long sleeve gray shirt on, and kaki torn up shorts. But unlike the other two, he appeared to have white sock that covered his small feet. He stepped to the other side of Naruto and pointed to the girl resting on his back.

"Naruto," He sniffled, "What's on your back?" He asked.

"It's a girl you idiot." Another voice came from the back. The group, excluding Neji and the spikey haired kid who were stilling arguing, turned to the last unknown child on the couch. He was small enough to fit perfectly on the two cushions, making him the smallest out of them all. He wore a hat that was bigger than his entire head, leaving only enough room for the edges of his dark brown spikey hair to appear. On his body was a small red vest that exposed his bare chest area. His shorts were black that made it a little ways passed his knees, and also appeared to have no footwear on.

"Is she dead?" Moegi asked, peeking her head around for a closer and more attentive look.

Naruto looked at the sleeping child on his back. Though her eyes were closed, he could feel the light breeze of each breath on the tips of his hair. He smiled. "Naw, she's just sleeping." He said, making his way to the bedroom again.

"Who's she?" Moegi's voice began once again. Naruto turned around to see the entire group of kids giving a stare down to Hinata. Hinata looked around nervously as all eyes, not including the bickering duo, rested upon her. Slowly they watched as she raised her hand and gave them all a tiny wave.

"H-Hi." She greeted nervously with a smile. Naruto smiled back at how nervous she was.

"That's Hinata," He spoke, not removing an eye from her. Hinata looked into his eyes, feeling somewhat reassured in them. "She'll be living with us from now on." He told the kids.

Moegi glanced over at Naruto and then back at Hinata, analyzing her. "You've never brought a girl home before." Moegi stated.

Naruto looked at her curiously. "I brought you home, didn't I?" He reasoned with a smile.

"Yeah, but this girl's actually pretty." The boy besides Neji entered in. Annoyed by his response, Neji gave him a light tap upside the young one's head, causing him to grip it with discomfort. He turned around to glare at Neji, but Neji just snorted at his childish antics.

"Shut up Konohamaru!" Moegi shouted from across the room, before sticking her tongue out in retaliation. Konohamaru responded with the same action, but was once again smacked by Neji.

"Quit hitting me!" Konohamaru protested.

"Grow up." Neji responded sharply.

The boys continued to bicker like a pair of siblings as the group watched. The smallest member, Inari, looked over at Naruto and pointed his finger towards their direction, specifically at Neji. "Who's that guy?" Inari asked.

"That's, erm…" Naruto hesitated, trying to force himself to recall the name of Hinata's elder brother. He continued to ponder for a while, which made Hinata giggle. She then turned her attention to Inari and answered for the young child's question in his place.

"That's my older brother Neji." Hinata explained. Inari nodded, as he continued to watch Neji and Konohamaru. His eyes then made their way over to the little person who rested on Naruto's back peacefully. He glanced at back at Hinata. "Is that your sister?" He asked. His eyes following the path back to the sleeping child.

Hinata nodded. "Yes. That's Hanabi." She answered.

Moegi stared at the youngest child as she circled around both her and Naruto. "She's so lucky." Moegi awed, "I've always wanted to have an older sister."

Naruto looked down and smiled kindly at the red-haired girl. "Well Hinata can be your older sister." Naruto said, looking over at Hinata. She blushed as her name escaped his lips. "In fact, she can be everyone's older sister, and Neji can be our older brother." Naruto smiled.

Moegi cheered as she ran over to grab Hinata's hand. Moegi looked up at her new 'older sister' with a smile so big and so pure that Hinata couldn't help but smile back in reflex. Neji sucked his teeth as he turned his away from Naruto, showing dissatisfaction in his face over the previous statement.

"I'd rather not." Neji muttered. His words still audible and his tone, disgusted.

"Neji!" Hinata scolded; her voice so soft.

Inari looked over at Hinata and shook his head reassuringly. "It's okay," He told her, "We have Naruto here anyways."

"Yeah!" Konohamaru's voice joined in. "He's the one we look up to the most! He's kind of like our big brother. " Neji's eyes began to roll as the boy continued to speak. "Plus, now that you're here you can be our sister! That way Moegi has someone to show her girl stuff."

Hinata looked down at the little girl whose hand was still in her grasp. Moegi's big eyes glanced back up at Hinata as a smile became apparent on her face. "You'll be my big sister, right?" Hinata couldn't help but return the expression to the little one beside her.

"I'd be honored Moegi." As soon as the words left Hinata's mouth, Moegi embraced the Hyuuga girl in the tightest squeeze she had ever felt. It felt so wonderful that she couldn't help but be overtaken by laughter and joy. She, in return, wrapped her arms around the young child.

"Hey Moegi!" Inari spoke up. "What are you doing with Hinata?"

Moegi looked confused as she was examined the position was she currently in with Hinata. They're arms were wrapped around each other. "I don't know…" Moegi answered honestly. "I don't know why I did this, but it felt right."

Hinata smiled, remember that Naruto also hadn't known what this was. "It's called a hug." Hinata answered. "You do it with someone makes you really happy and you just can't help but hold them."

"Yeah!" Moegi smiled. "I was so happy, I couldn't help myself!" She grinned.

Hinata's head looked up to see Naruto's face smiling down at her. She briefly smiled back at him before refocusing her attention to Moegi. "But I must ask why you all are up so late?" Hinata questioned, remembering that it was the darkest time of night when she was journeying to Neverland. "Isn't it past your bedtime?"

A sniffle came from besides her. She looked to see the boy with glasses, Udon, rubbing his nose with his sleeve. "We stayed up so that we can be told our stories."

Neji's eyes rolled, as he folded his arms to block off any adorable charms that the children would try to possess him with. "You have got to be kidding me." He rudely commented.

Ignoring him completely, Moegi looked up at Hinata with a puppyish face. "Hinata, you'll tell us a story won't you?"

Hinata looked down at her, somewhat unsure of herself. Her eyes made their way around the room to only see the rest of the youth population staring back at her. Accompanied with Naruto's and Neji's eyes as well, Hinata looked at them all. "W-Well, I'm not that g-good at telling stories." She answered.

Naruto could see the uneasy expression on Hinata's face, which caused an unhappy one to be placed upon his own. "Hinata," He spoke. The resonance of his voice commanded the entire room's attention. "She had a really long night, so she'll tell us a story in the morning okay?"

The children looked around the room at each other. Udon at Moegi, Inari at Udon, Moegi at Konohamaru, Konohamaru at Inari, and so on as each child keep switching glances with the next. One by one they returned their attentions towards Naruto and smiled. "Okay!"

Hinata smiled as she looked over at Naruto to see the same thing. Naruto used his head to beckon Hinata. "C'mon, I'll let you sleep in my bed tonight."

A dark, cold aura immediately made its presence known throughout the entire room. It sent a chill down everyone's spine, except for Naruto who was completely oblivious to ill-feeling emotions. The blonde boy, unknowingly, turned around to become face to face with the oldest Hyuuga. His was face cold, stern and beyond scary by any means. Behind the blonde kid, Hinata hesitantly attempted to calm Neji down.

"N-Neji…" Her voice shook.

"Where did you say Hinata will be sleeping tonight?" Neji grimaced. Naruto looked at Neji blankly, without any concern.

"In my bed," Naruto casually repeated. "Is that a problem?" Naruto smiled. Neji looked down at him with intensity and pure annoyance.

"That all depends," He said, getting closer into Naruto's face, leaving only enough space for them to breathe. Neji's eyes looked intensely into Naruto's, almost as if he were trying to dig himself greatly into Naruto's soul. But the blonde just stood there, keeping his eyes calmly on Neji, though the smile on his face was removed. "Where do _you_ intend on sleeping tonight?"

"Where he always sleeps," Moegi spoke up from behind Hinata. Hinata watched as the small red head placed herself between the two bigger males. Their attention remained on one another, though it was clear that they acknowledged the girl's presence. She pointed over to the big grand chair that remained in the corner of the room. "Naruto sleeps in that big chair over there so that he can keep an eye on us while he's sleeping."

"Is that so…?" Neji inquired, still keeping his eyes on Naruto. Naruto stared back, engaging him in his own staring contest, when Hinata butted in, grabbing Neji by the hand.

"Neji…"

He continued to let Hinata shake his hand, pleading for his attention, while Neji kept his eyes on Naruto. "And where will I be sleeping?" Neji asked.

"On the couch," Naruto answered, nudging his head that direction, which gave Neji's eyes a place to follow. "That alright with you?"

Neji's eyes shifted slowly over to the couch. It was a two cushion couch, which would barely be able to fit Neji's entire body. He was too big for it, which was an obvious sight, but it was definitely the best option besides the bed. Still, he'd rather be placed in the room with his sisters than out there alone with the kids. "I'm obviously too big for that tiny thing." Neji commented harshly.

Hinata's grip tightened on Neji's hand. "Neji!" She said; her voice clear. She turned over her shoulder and smiled meekly at Naruto. "Thank you Naruto. He actually really appreciates it." She assured him.

Naruto's eyes were locked on Neji as he gave him a blatantly fake smile. "He should." Neji's glare hardened at the young blonde, but his attention was already too focused on Hinata to notice. "C'mere Hinata, I'll show you you're room." He grabbed her hand as he led her to the room behind the red curtain.

As Hinata followed his lead, she glanced over at her brother briefly as she saw the stone cold look on his face. Her eyes were too frightened that she turned back and kept her gaze locked on the child that remained sleeping on Naruto's backside. It triggered something. "T-Thank you Naruto," she said politely. "But, I really would prefer to sleep in the same room as Hanabi."

Naruto looked back, giving her a largely toothed smile. "Of course!" He grinned. "You both can share my bed." Hinata smiled back and nodded, as Naruto used his free hand to part the curtains and lead them to the inside of his room.

Neji frowned as he watched Hinata and Naruto walk calmly away from him. The happy look on Naruto's face made him even more disgusted with the kid. First he brought his sister to this Neverland, without any reason, and now he was letting her sleep in his bed. There was something wrong with kid, and Neji could sense it.

Below him, Moegi was watching as Neji looked at Naruto with pure annoyance and hatred. Even with her young age, she blushed in awe at what was happening. Neji wasn't happy. Neji was upset that Naruto was spending so much time with his sister, and didn't want him to do anything to harm her. He was so protective of her, and it was coolest thing Moegi ever saw.

"I wish I had a protective brother," Her thoughts spoke from her lips. Neji looked down at the young child, who only returned him with a smile. His eyes rolled which was joined by his annoyed expression. He walked past the girl and took his place on the couch, scrunching himself up so he'd be able to fit it.

Behind him, a conversation between Konohamaru and Udon took place in a whispered tone.

"What's he protecting her from?" Konohamaru asked.

"Naruto, I think." Udon responded back.

"Why?" Konohamaru continued to question. Udon shrugged his shoulders, as they looked at Neji. His back was facing them as the front of his body was turned towards the back wall of the couch. Even from his back it was apparent that he was angry. The two boys stared a moment longer before turning around to get to bed, leaving the displeased Hyuuga alone.

* * *

Hinata carefully lifted Hanabi from Naruto's back, cradling her in her arms. She gently placed her younger sister on the full sized bed that was placed before them. Once placed, Hanabi fidgeted in her sleep to get comfort. Hinata took a seat beside her and caressed the hair away from her eyes. The touch of Hinata's hand caused a more calm expression to come across Hanabi's sleeping face. Naruto smiled at the adorable scene.

"You're sister sure can sleep." He commented, remembering the long journey that they had been through in just one night and how Hanabi missed it all. Hinata nodded, still looking gently at her sister.

"She had a long day…" Hinata told him, still recalling the soccer incident that occurred early. Clueless, Naruto smiled.

"We've had a long night." Naruto came back. A small, light laugh escaped Hinata's lips.

"We did."

Naruto leaned in, his lips directly into Hinata's ear. "And it's not over yet." He told her, leaning out as her head whipped around. He flew back a bit, allowing Hinata enough room to stand up carefully, avoiding waking her younger sister.

Carefully and questionably, Hinata made her way over to him, leaving about a three foot distance between them. "What do you mean?" She asked.

Seeing that Hinata stopped, Naruto filled in the rest of the distance on his own, leaving them about a foot apart. He looked behind him at the curtain as his eyes scanned down below, which would reveal if someone was standing right behind it or not. It was clear. He glanced over Hinata's shoulder at her younger sister to make sure she was still sleeping. She was. He then looked back into Hinata's eyes.

"I really need to show you something." He told her.

Hinata's eyes widened. She looked back at Hanabi, who she had finally put to bed, then back at the boy. "Right now?" She inquired.

Naruto nodded, as he gripped the Hyuuga girl's wrist. "Yeah, c'mon!" He pulled her to the other side of the room, aimlessly Hinata followed. He let go of her hand for a moment to push the table opposite of the bed over a bit. Hinata watched curiously as the table was moved and behind it a dark hole was revealed. Her eyes widened as she remembered the last hole she entered, but her memory was interrupted by Naruto's laughter. "Don't worry Hinata, you climb up this one." He said, bending down to enter the hole.

"W-Wait!" Hinata stopped him. Naruto froze, only turning his head to face Hinata. The girl looked back at the sleeping child in the bed and then back to him. "What about Hanabi?"

Naruto uncurled himself so he could stand up straight. He scratched his head unsurely as he looked at Hinata, sheepishly. "I kind of wanted to show this just to you." He answered honestly. The sincerity in his voice caused Hinata's face to glow. His eyes gazed deeply into hers, which forced Hinata to turn away from discomfort. She looked back at Hinata, uncertain of what to do. Naruto could see the troubled emotions in her eyes. "Besides," He began. "It's not like she'll be alone. The kids are here, and so is your brother!"

Hinata looked back. "But-"

"Hinata," Naruto stared directly at her, not wavering at bit. To Hinata, it felt like he was staring right through her, like he could see all of her. "Please…" He begged.

His expression was so pleading it looked like an adorable puppy dog begging for attention. Hinata bit her lip, as thoughts scanned throughout her head. She glanced back and forth between the two. The sleeping younger sister, who she couldn't help but protect and defend, also her promise to never leave her, would she be breaking it? Then again, her eyes landed on Naruto. The beautiful, magical boy with the golden locks and the ocean blue eyes had created such a breathtaking journey for her tonight. To disappoint him now would also be a disappointment to her, which is far from what she wanted.

Hinata stared wearily into Naruto's eyes. "It won't take too long, will it?"

Naruto smiled as he took his head. He placed his two dominate fingers up. "Scouts honor." Hinata smiled, and nodded.

"Okay, let's go."

* * *

The two managed to sneak out of the house through the hole in Naruto's room without being noticed. The moon was still high in the sky as Naruto led the way through the jungle-like arena. Hinata followed, step over objects and ducking underneath the branches that Naruto would hold up for her. She questioned why it wouldn't be easier for them to just fly, but Naruto complained that it would ruin the surprise for them.

"Naruto, where are we going anyway?" Hinata asked, attempting to get an answer out of him. They've been walking for a while and were definitely far away from the home site. Naruto just kept walking, as Hinata struggled to keep up behind him.

"You'll see…" Naruto came back, the grin shined through even in his voice.

They kept walking. Hinata began to worry whether or not this was the right decision or not. Why did she decide to leave Hanabi for Naruto, she'd never done something like that before? What made him so special that she would disappear on her sister for him? Yes, she had Neji, but still, she couldn't help but worry.

"Hinata," Naruto called out, regaining Hinata's attention. He smiled at her softly. "Close your eyes." He told her. Hesitantly, Hinata did what she was told. She heard the footsteps of Naruto in the grass approach her. He stopped close enough that she could feel the warmth from off his body pass through her own. "I'm gonna carry you now, okay?" He warned her. Hinata nodded as she felt him warm his arms around the knees of her legs and lift her up bridal style. She kept her eyes close as she hugged her arms around his neck for safety. The touch of his body was so warm, it felt nice. Even with her eyes closed she could feel the breeze of the air caressing her face, making it easy to determine that he was flying. It made her smile, the image of his carrying her through the starry sky, what she would give to see it. She felt Naruto place her feet on the ground.

"Can I open my eyes now?" Hinata asking, believing that they were now here. Naruto grabbed on to Hinata's hand once again, pulling her alongside him.

"Not yet." He answered. Hinata kept her eyes shut, even placing her free hand over them, as she allowed Naruto to lead her around. They walked for a while. She could hear the sounds of crickets chirping, as well as an owl or two calling to one another. Her ankles were tickled from the extended grass brushing up against her. And even though Naruto did his best to push a pathway for them through the bushes, there were times when Hinata was overcome by their branches. Still, with Naruto's hand, she still managed to make it through.

"Hinata," Naruto said, stopping. Hinata also stopped, and with her eyes still closed she turned her head in the direction of Naruto's voice. Naruto looked at her and smiled. He took the hand that she had covering her eyes and gently removed it from her face. It was too dark for him to see the blush on Hinata's face. "Okay, open your eyes now."

Hinata's eyelids rose up, revealing her beautiful, lightly colored eyes. She glanced at Naruto first, who was staring right at her. It was clear he was awaiting her expression. He nudged his head in the direction that he wanted her to look at. Hinata's eyes went there and her mouth immediately dropped. Her eyes widened with amazement as her hands rose up to her mouth. "Naruto…" She gasped. "It's beautiful…"

The waterfall the she had seen early when she first flown into Neverland was now a clear view placed right in front of her. It was beautiful as the sounds of the water hit the river that was placed below it. The water was lit to glow by the light of the moon, as the sprinkles of water looked like little twinkling stars before it came in contact to the big body underneath. In the middle of the wide river, though it was small enough that the other side of land across from it was still visible from where they were, stood a tall tree on a small platform. The tree was beautiful and well nurtured. It glistened, which Hinata believed was due to the spattered water from the waterfall and light that shined from the moon above. Little fireflies added to the scenery by dancing around the glowing tree, making it only that much more magical.

"So, what do you think?" Naruto asked after watching Hinata's eyes stay glued to the scene for a while.

Hinata kept her eyes on the scene in front of her, only shifting them to take a look around. "It's amazing." Hinata awed. "It's so light, and pretty. And the fireflies-"

"Fireflies?" Naruto intruded in on her statement questionably. He looked around trying to find them, but wasn't able to. "Where do you see fireflies Hinata?"

Hinata looked over at him briefly and unsurely for a moment. She them pointed to the lights flying around the tree. "There." Naruto looked at them, really focusing hard, but he still couldn't see what she was seeing. Hinata glanced over at him, realizing that Naruto still had no idea on what she was talking about. "Those lights that are flying around the tree," Hinata added in explanation.

Naruto snorted. "Those aren't fireflies, they're fairies." He informed her.

It was Hinata's turn to look intently at the flying dots. "Fairies…?" She inquired. Her eyes squinted for a clearer view. "They're really fairies?" Her voice seemed somewhat nervous and shaky.

"Of course," Naruto responded. "You haven't forgotten about Sakura already, have you?"

"Sakura…?" Hinata gasped, covering her nose as a reflex. Her eyes scanned the dark sky in front of and behind her. Naruto smiled, attempting to hold back his laughter, but a few giggles managed to slither out. He knew that Hinata was acting like this due to her first encounter with Sakura, which wasn't exactly pleasant.

"Don't worry," Naruto chuckled. "She's not here."

Hinata looked at Naruto with uncertainty. "W-Where is she then?" Hinata questioned, feeling as if she wasn't safe until she knew Sakura's exact whereabouts. Though she kept her main focus on Naruto, whose look seemed to be as if he were deep in thought, she still managed to use her peripheral to examine the area around her.

Naruto shrugged and scratched his head. "I don't really know," He answered truthfully, not wanting to lie to Hinata. "She wonders off a lot, but I don't really question it since she comes back eventually." Naruto continued, "But I know for sure she's not here."

"How do you know…?" Hinata reacted, still not believing him completely.

Naruto frowned. "You don't trust me?"

"I-It's not that." Hinata muttered, looking away towards the ground. She then felt her chin be lifted up by some force. That same force turned to head to come in eye to eye contact with Naruto, who gave her a quite serious look. Even in the night, his eyes were still so blue. But before he could speak, Hinata turned her head away, out of Naruto's hand. "I-I'm sorry!" She apologized, trying to calm down her emotions and heart rate.

Naruto smiled. "You're funny Hinata." He grinned. "Come on," He said grabbing onto her once again. "Let's go."

Hinata watched and felt as both pairs of their feet got lifted freely off the ground. She felt a nice breeze guide them as they headed for the tree in the middle of the water. As the got closer, Hinata was able to get a more in depth look at the creatures that were flying around the glowing tree. It was true what Naruto had said, they were little fairies, each as stunning and graceful as the one next to it. One fairy, which had a blue glow to her, with long, beautiful black hair, came up to Hinata and appeared to be examining her. Hinata stared at her, frightened and unsure of what stunt she was bound to pull, but she just smiled sweetly. Distrustfully, Hinata did her best to smile back. She assumed it was accepted because after her attempt that fairy flew away, back down towards the water.

After that Hinata started to examine each fairy in particular. She realized that there were even male fairies, whose elegance was only accompanied by their masculine appearance. Her eyes even caught on two a pair of fairies, one boy and one girl, who appeared to be a couple. Through their motions, Hinata interrupted that he had asked her to dance and she had hesitantly accepted. Together, they soared through the sky, spinning and twirling hand by hand as the glittered that had trailed behind them, one red and one yellow, interlocked into one orange color. They danced right past Hinata's face as they flew above her. Her eyes followed, even Naruto glanced over at the two fairies and smiled. They both watched as the fairies disappeared with stars and the others in the night sky. It was also at the moment Hinata realized how close they were to the glowing tree. It seemed like they were about to even enter into the leaves and branches of the large tree, but in the end they took a left turn and Naruto grabbed Hinata bride-like and placed her on a branch that was shaded by the leaves but was still on the outermost part of the tree. He sat beside her, scooting a little closer.

"Naruto, this place is so…" Hinata was at a loss for words as the blue fairy from earlier, came back to her side. In her hands was a light purple water lily that was assumingly from the river below. She held it out for Hinata. Hinata smiled as she raised hand to take it, but drew it back as soon as she saw the fairy start to move again. The blue fairy smiled as she placed her in Hinata's hair right behind her right ear, as a sort of decoration. When she moved away, she made a rectangle with her hands using both her pointer fingers and thumbs. She nodded, as a sign of accomplishment and smiled, before flying off again. Hinata felt the flower in her hair and looked over at Naruto for approval.

"It looks great on you Hinata." He assured her. Hinata smiled bashfully. He grinned, as he faced outward. Their bodies facing the direction of the waterfall, and the fairies that were dancing around it only made it even more dazzling. Little by little the fairies would come over to greet Hinata and Naruto. Whether it was a wave, or a smile, they each showed their respect to the two humans sitting in a tree.

"Naruto…" Hinata said, still paying attention to the fairies that flew by, but still managed to glance over at him every so often. "What are they doing…?"

Naruto smiled. He scratched his shoulder nervously, and slowly moved his hand to the back of his neck. The scratch then turned into a rub as he answered Hinata's question. "I've kind of talked to them about you before. So, they're a bit excited to meet you."

Hinata looked at him. "You've talked about me?"

"Yeah," Naruto answered. Hinata's lips quirked up. "I told them about how good of a storyteller you are." He added on, causing Hinata's lips to frown a bit, but she quickly fixed her face, not wanting to allow Naruto to see it. Another fairy with blonde hair and a scarlet dress that perfectly matched her scarlet head came down towards the two. Her hair was tied back in a little pig tail. She got right in Hinata's face causing Hinata to lean back a bit. The little fairy looked her up and down a couple of times before nodding. She then made her way over to Naruto and used her little hand to pull on his ear before whispering to him. Hinata watched as the fairy and Naruto conversed with one another. "Yeah… I know…" He smiled. "Yeah, she was." Hinata watched as the fairy glanced back at her once more before she whispered one last phrase into Naruto's ear. "You're right, she is…" Naruto grinned, glancing over at Hinata. With that, the red-dressed fairy made her exit, leaving the two children alone once again.

"What did she say?" Hinata inquired, looking off into the direction in where the fairy disappeared to. Naruto shrugged.

"Nothing much, just that Sakura probably wouldn't like you very much, since you're friends with me." Naruto responded. He smiled over at Hinata. "And that she thinks you're really pretty."

Hinata smiled shyly. She swung her feet that were dangling from the branch, as she looked out at the waterfall. "R-Really?" She responded modestly. She started to play with the flower that the blue fairy had placed in her hair. "Say, Naruto…" Hinata started, "Why are there so many fairies on this island?" She asked, "Why aren't they anywhere else?"

Naruto looked over at her and dumbfounded. "Why would they go anywhere else?" Naruto asked, as if that were an irrational question to be made in the first place. "These fairies created Neverland, why would they want to leave?"

"They made this?" Hinata awed at Naruto. Naruto nodded. His feet began to swing as well. At first they were going at the opposite times of Hinata's, but as time went on, little by little they began to sync up.

"They've created everything here." Naruto explained. "In fact, they each have important talents that help to keep this island running. Like there're water fairies, and light fairies that create the stars and lights, and gardening fairies that make the plants…"

"I had no idea…" Hinata said in amazement. She watched as the fairies played around together, dancing and having a great time with their other magical being companions. "What does Sakura do?"

Naruto shrugged. "I don't know," He answered. "She's never told me." Hinata just kept her eyes on him. He looked over to face her, giving her a happy expression. "I'd figure she'll tell me when she wants to."

Hinata smiled, "Naruto…" Her eyes were soon captured by the dancing duo she had seen early. It was the pair with the red boy fairy and the yellow female one. They were still dancing together so beautifully, and were still creating that orange dust. They flew so close that Hinata was able to stick her hand out and collect the orange dust that came from both of them. Naruto looked over to see how entranced Hinata was by the couple, and it gave him an idea.

Naruto cleared his throat, attracting Hinata's attention towards him and away from the pair. Hinata looked over and watched as Naruto removed himself from the branch the two were sitting on, causing it to wobble a bit, and start to float in the air, directly in front of her. He smiled at her as he held his hand out.

"Would you care to dance, my lady?" He cheesed. Hinata smiled, as she graciously nodded. She gently placed her hand into his. With that gesture, Naruto pulled her from off the tree branch, forcing her into his arms, causing the fairy dust in her hand to spill all over. Some of it landed on the two of them while the rest landed on the ground below. Hinata watched for a brief moment as the fairy dust she had held trickled to the ground below, but turned her attention back to Naruto soon enough who was smiling at her brightly. She couldn't restrain herself from forming a smile of her own.

With his abilities, Naruto lifted the two outwards, closer to the waterfall. The air there was definitely cooler and moister. Properly, Naruto grabbed Hinata's right hand with his left, and placed his own right hand around her waist. Hinata, following protocol, placed her left hand on Naruto's shoulder. She looked up at him to see that he was already staring at her. Soon, they began twirling through the air together, dancing. The fairies that once surrounded them slowly began to dimmer away, leaving the two kids to their own little world. They twirled endlessly, but their eyes remained focused on one another. Hinata's lilac, big, moonlike eyes were lost in Naruto's sea-blue, mystical ones. And for some reason, it felt like they belonged there.

Still, something wasn't right. "Naruto," Hinata's voice spoke softly.

"What is it?" He responded.

They continued to twirl in silence for a bit. Hinata's voice then continued to converse once more. "Why did you bring me here?" She asked quietly.

"I thought you wanted to come with me to Neverland…?" Naruto recalled. His voice sounded audibly confused.

"N-No," She smiled lightly. "I mean here, to this place."

"I wanted to show it to you." Naruto claimed. Hinata shook her head. She knew what she was asking what really what she wanted to say. It's what she really wanted to know, she wasn't able to say. She wasn't sure if she understood his feelings, or her own in fact.

"N-No, I-I mean... Why are you treating me like this?" She spoke, bravely.

"Like what?" Naruto inquire.

"Like-" She bit her lip and thought to herself for a second. She let out a deep sigh, revealing her defeat as she chose to just leave it as was for now. "Never mind..." Her grip on Naruto's hand began to loosen as she unconsciously placed her head on Naruto's shoulder. "I guess I'm just a little tired." She yawned in his ear.

"Hinata…?" Naruto called, as he looked at her on his shoulder. She had completely lost her grip on his left hand and the only thing keeping the two together was Naruto's hand that was wrapped around her waist, and her head that was placed on Naruto's shoulder. "Hinata?" He called out once again. He turned his head even more to get a better view of the girl. His eyes first widened then relaxed as his expression faded into a smile. The girl had fallen asleep on his shoulder.

As Naruto lowered the two of them to the ground, repositioning her to carry her in his arms, fairies fluttered around them, smiling and giggling at the sight that two of them had created. Naruto couldn't help smile and laugh quietly along with them, as he thought of how they looked.

"It's kind of like that _Sleeping Beauty_ story," He whispered to himself once they finally reached the ground. The fairies continued to huddle around the two and laugh as Naruto placed the young maiden in the grass below. He quietly hushed the laughing fairies around him, in fear of their joys waking Hinata up. They nodded, and obeyed, but still chuckled silently. Once gently placed, Naruto sat alongside her, watching her as she slept. She looked so peaceful, and her skin looked so white, as the moonlight kissed it purely. She looked almost too delicate to touch.

He gently lied down next to her, trying not to stir the grass beneath her. His eyes were up at the moon, focusing on the stars in the sky. Next to the moon stood a pair of stars that reflected to where Hinata's homeland is located. Each star twinkled separately as Naruto recalled what an adventure it was bringing Hinata here. He turned over on his side to come face to face with the sleeping girl. He stared at for a while, watching her sleep.

"Don't worry Hinata," Naruto whispered to the sleeping Hyuuga. "You'll stay here with me," He reached for her hand and grabbed it, curling his fingers around it, "And together, we'll never have to grow up." He then removed the rest of his fingers, leaving only both their pinkies connected. "I promise." He swore, closing his eyes and joining Hinata for a nice, night slumber.

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	4. Chapter 3 EXTRA

The room was pitch dark as the sleeping child was left alone in the bed. At first glance she seemed to be sound asleep, but once she began to shift around it appeared to be the opposite. A few more rustles were heard from the bed before she finally settled down and her eyes fluttered open. Still, her sight was useless due to the darkness that surrounded her. Hanabi managed to sit herself up in the bed, rubbing her eyes and squinting them to try and get a clearer view, though it remained useless.

"Hinata?" Hanabi's voice called out into the darkness. She remained silent hoping to hear some sort of reply in return. After waiting for a second or two, she repeated herself a little louder. This time when she didn't receive a reply, she began to worry.

"Hinata, where are you?" Hanabi questioned, getting out of the bed. With total darkness phasing her vision, Hanabi cautiously made her way around the room while keeping her arms in front of her to secure her safety. She came in contact with a large cloth. It was huge, and it appeared to be covering the entrance to another room. It seemed to be like a version of a door. "Hinata?" Hanabi called again. She pushed the large fabric out of her way and entered the next room. "Hinata?"

She continued forward. This next room seemed to be a bit lighter, but still not much was visible. She could only tell that this room had a lot of furniture. Slowly and carefully Hanabi tiptoed her on way.

"Hinata... this isn't funny anymore." Her voice began to shake. "Hinata, where are you-oof!" Her foot got caught on something caused her to fall forward, luckily enough she used as much of her own weight as she could to pull herself back in the opposite direction, allowing her to fall on her backside. "Ow..." She muttered quietly too herself.

"What the heck...?" Another voice groaned back. It caused Hanabi to gasp and scoot back a little. She had no idea what the was, but it sounded like a person.

Her eyes began to make out the shape of a small figure beginning to sit up right.

"Who are you?" Hanabi asked, switching her positioning so it was more accessible for her to be able to jump onto her feet at any given moment. The figure's head turned over in her direction. Hanabi could feel her heart starting to pound.

"I'm Konohamaru." It was the voice of a boy. His hands went up to face and began rubbing his eyes. Once he finished, he leaned forward to get a better look at Hanabi. As he leaned in, Hanabi leaned back. In the darkness, he could make out small figure of a girl he had never seen before. "Are you that girl?"

Hanabi gulped. She was in complete discomfort. "Um, what girl?" She asked.

"Hinata and Neji's little sister, you're her right?" Konohamaru questioned. Though it was dark, there was a small light in Hanabi's eyes that sparkled at the sound of her sister's name.

"You know Hinata?" Her voice was filled with excitement, and completely ignoring the fact that he had also mentioned the name of her older brother. This time it was Hanabi who leaned into Konohamaru. The boy moved back a bit confused and feeling a little invaded. "Do you know where she is?"

A scratching sound appeared as Konohamaru's hand rubbed against the back of his neck. "She wasn't in the room with you?"

Hanabi shook her head somberly. "No..."

"Hm..." The boy began to think. "That means Naruto probably took her somewhere."

"Naruto?" Hanabi repeated. "Who's Naruto? Why is he with my sister? Where are they?" The young Hyuuga child continued to bombard the innocent lost boy with unanswerable questions.

"Uh..." It was obvious that he wasn't too comfortable with the situation he was in now. "I don't know," He responded honestly. "They'll be back in the morning, why don't you ask them then?"

"In the morning?" Hanabi squeaked. Her mouth was immediately covered by a hand. Konohamaru's hand. He got right in her face and pressed his finger to his own lips.

"Shh!" He warned her. It was the first time either of them had a really good look at one another. Konohamaru noted that her eyes looked exactly like her sister's, while Hanabi was able to note that he had a large set of eyes of his own. That and the fact that she found him, kind of cute, in a scruffy way. He removed his hand from her mouth. "You'll wake the others up." He finally spoke.

"Others?" Hanabi asked. She looked around the room, but it was still too dark for her to clearly see anything or anyone. "There are others?" Her voice was even lower than it had previously been.

Konohamaru nodded. "Yeah, there's four of us, well five, if you include your brother."

"Neji's here?"

"Yeah, I told you that already." His voice was obviously agitated, mostly due to the interruption of his sleep. "You obviously weren't listening." He stated.

"Does he know where Hinata is?" It appeared to be that the only time Hanabi would speak would be in question format. To Konohamaru it was getting a bit repetitive and a tad annoying.

"Probably not since he's still sleeping." Konohamaru replied. His eyes glanced back in the direction to where Neji was resting. Hanabi tried to follow, but it was too dark for her eyes to catch anything. "Just wait until they come back in the morning." He advised her.

Hanabi shook her head as she started to get up on her feet. "No!" Her voice was bold, it even caused Konohamaru to flinch a little. "I'm going to go find her."

"But she with Naruto, she's fine." The tired brunette boy assured her.

"I don't care!" She said, sticking to her gun. "I'm gonna go find my sister." Hanabi spun around on her toes as her hair whipped around behind her. Konohamaru leaned back a little to avoid a collision with it. As she started to walk he grabbed her hand. As soon as Hanabi felt the touch of his fingers, she forcefully pulled away. "Don't try to stop me!"

Konohamaru stood up. They were the exact same height. "I wasn't planning on it." He told her. Hanabi kept her eyes on him confused. He grabbed something from under his blanket that, through the shadows, looked a lot like a toy sword. "I'll help you look for them."

Hanabi eyed him in the darkness. "Why?" She inquired.

"Please," He scoffed. "A girl like you would get lost out there."

"A girl like me?" Hanabi huffed. "What's that suppose to mean?"

"I means that you'll have no idea where you're going, duh!" Konohamaru commented with a smile. "It's only your first time here, and you were asleep during the whole ride."

Hanabi backed up little. "Wait, where... am I?"

Konohamaru grinned as he walked passed her. "Come on, I'll show ya!" While passing her, he took her wrist and lead her back into Naruto's room. They saw the opening that Naruto and Hinata had previously gone through. Konohamaru headed towards it while Hanabi stayed behind.

"We have to go through there?" She asked, her voice sounding hesitant.

Konohamaru looked over his shoulder at her. "Yeah," He answered. His expression then turned sly. "What, you scared?"

Hanabi brows narrowed as she frowned at him. "No!" She responded with intensity. "It was only a question." She walked past the brown haired male and went over to the hole. She looked inside it cautiously before entering. Slowly but surely she headed up the ladder with Konohamaru following right behind her.

* * *

Once they had finally made it outside Hanabi was able to understand what Konohamaru had been telling her. She definitely wasn't home anymore. In fact she had no idea where she was. What on earth happened while she was sleeping? She was in a large, dirty forest and the ground beneath her felt cold. Her feet were only kept warm by the socks that she was wearing, which helped determine that she was definitely brought here from straight out of bed, and her head no longer ached. Still...

Looking around she saw nothing but wilderness. There was no building in sight. She was even surprised to see that the place she was staying in was nothing more than an underground tree house. It was at that moment she really began to worry about the whereabouts of her sister. She knew Hinata was brave and could take care of herself, still Hanabi couldn't help but be concerned.

She looked over at Konohamaru. She was surprised at how he looked under the night sky. Even though he was the same height as her, his face seemed more rough looking than most boys she knew. He was definitely more manly looking. Not that his face wasn't childlike, it was his facade. His presence didn't feel like that of a child, but of a boy who seemed to be in control. He looked rough and tough, like some sort of wild boy. It was weird to her, but in an intriguing way.

"What?" Konohamaru asked, taking the sword that he stuffed around his pants belt out.

"Why do you carry that thing around?" Hanabi inquired. She didn't originally have a question in mind, but since he started talking, she felt as if she had to say something.

Konohamaru looked at he sword. He smiled as he swung it around. Hanabi responded by rolling her eyes, especially since it was obvious that he was just showing off right now. To Hanabi it honestly looked like he was just dancing with the wooden object.

"For protection." He finally answered, placing it back in his belt.

"Protection?" She repeated. "Is it dangerous around here or something?" She began to feel a sense a worry as she thought about Hinata's own safety.

"Not for me." The boy boasted. "But for a girl it might be."

Hanabi puffed. "You know," Her voice was quite brazen when she spoke. "Just because I'm a girl doesn't mean I can't handle myself."

"Actually," Konohamaru started as he approached the Hyuuga girl, "it kind of does." He smiled right in her face.

At first Hanabi responded with the most sour glare the girl could give, which only made the lost boy feel that much more accomplished. She then turned around and started to walk in the northern direction alone. Konohamaru watched her triumphantly, but as she began to get further and further away, he became confused.

"Where are you going?" He asked.

"None of your business!" Hanabi stuck her hand up to wave him off.

"You really can't do this alone. It really is that dangerous." Konohamaru warned as he started to follow after her.

Hanabi stopped in her steps and turned around forcefully. "Watch me." She smirked. She started on her merrily way once more with a little faster pace. It was only a few steps later when she felt her wrist being grabbed by someone. Like earlier she snapped her arm to try and release it. It worked for a second, but it was quickly gripped once again. This annoyed her. She turned back with an irritated look. "Will you just let me go?"

Her eyes widened. It wasn't Konohamaru. It was some tall guy with long blonde hair, and bangs that covered his right eye. "It's a beautiful night for a walk, hm?" He spoke, winking at the tiny Hyuuga child.

A small whimper came from Hanabi's lips. This was obviously what Konohamaru was talking about. Luckily he was still close by. Hanabi did her best get past him and return to Konohamaru, but her struggle only forced the blonde teen to grab her in some sort of waist lock. His arms were wrapped around her stomach as she began to fight his grasp.

"Konohamaru!" She called out still fighting. "Kono-" The white in Hanabi's eyes began to show. When she turned back for Konohamaru, she noticed the brown haired boy completely knocked out on the ground. Next to him was another tall boy. He had short hair that had such a red tint it was obvious that he was a redhead even though it was dark.

"Looks like your little boyfriend is taking a nap." The blond boy that grabbed her commented. "Would you like to join him, hm?"

Her heart was beating, racing. She was frightened. There she was, being kidnapped in a strange place with no one to rescue her. No help, no hope. What was she going to do?

"Deidara." The other one spoke. "Stop messing with her."

"Aw, come on Sasori!" The one known as Deidara whined. "I was just trying to have a little fun! It's not everyday we get to have such an exciting night out." He smiled down at Hanabi, who was doing her best just to avoid any sort of eye contact with either of them.

Sasori made his way over towards the two of them. Hanabi held her breath. Not only was she out numbered, but it was evident that she stood no chance whatsoever. Sasori gazed down as he stopped right in front of her. Her head was facing the ground, completely preventing them from looking at one another.

"Is this the girl Sakura was talking about?" Sasori asked his companion. Deidara looked down at the girl then back at his friend. His response was a shrug. Sasori sighed. "Whatever." He then took his hand and pressed a pressure point on the back of Hanabi's collar bone. A small gasp was heard before the girl had completely fainted into the blonde boy's arms.

Deidara smiled as he caught the little Hyuuga. He fixed her in his arms so he was able to carry her in a bridal position. He glanced up at Sasori. "Is that what you did to the other one too?"

Sasori looked at the boy on the ground over his left shoulder. He was groaning quietly and attempting to move, but it appeared to be difficult. "No." He answered with such a monotone voice. "I broke his rib."

Deidara was a bit taken back. He whistled. "Wow Sasori, a little violent aren't we, hm?" He teased.

Sasori responded with the rolling of his eyes "Whatever." He said bored as he made he way past Deidara. "Come on, we don't want to keep him waiting."

Deidara frowned. By 'him' Sasori was referring to their captain. Deidara obviously didn't have too fond of a feeling towards the guy, but still followed behind Sasori as he was ordered to do.

On the ground behind them Konohamaru had managed to lift his head up in their direction. His gaze was blurry and could only make out their body shapes. He was also able to catch a glimpse of Hanabi, who was being carried in one of the teen boys' arms. That's when he realized something. He knew who they were. In fact he had recognized them immediately, and if it weren't for his body giving out on him, he would've fought to save her.

His eyes stayed locked on all three of them. He watched as they got further away from him, disappearing in the darkness. No matter how badly he fought to move, his body just wouldn't budge.

"Naruto..." The scene was becoming darker. His body felt weaker as his eyes got heavy. "What do I... do...?" Everything went black.

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	5. Chapter 4

The sun shined brightly in the sky. The fairies had all gone back into hiding, each performing their own little job that allowed Neverland to run smoothly. It was the next morning after Hinata and her siblings had all arrived in Neverland. Hinata's eyes opened slowly. She saw the image of a blond boy sleeping by her side. A soft smile went across her face. After having such an eventful evening last night, and all the energy Naruto possessed, it was nice to see him in his peaceful state. She definitely didn't want to wake him, but apparently two other people had that option in mind.

"Naruto!" A young girl's voice called out. Hinata was still somewhat drowsy and had trouble forcing herself to sit up and look. "Naruto! Hinata!" The voice called again.

"Naruto!" Another voice joined in. This time it was the sound of a boy's. They were rapidly approaching. Hinata could even hear their footsteps on the ground where her head was resting. She glanced at Naruto once more to see that he was completely engulfed by slumber. It made her smile. She learned a new trait about him, that he is a heavy sleeper.

"Naruto!" Naruto's eyes shot open as the girl known as Moegi had jumped onto him. He showed an annoyed facial expression for a second from being woken up quite rudely. It soon faded as he became more awake. He sat himself up, rubbing his eyes for clarity. Hinata saw Naruto's body move and joined him in the upright position.

The blond boy yawned. "Hey Moegi." He smiled, he then turned over to look at Hinata, who was attempting to fix her messy hair the best she could through her fingers. "Morning Hinata."

Hinata smiled lightly, slightly embarrassed by her raggedy appearance. "Good morning..." She responded politely.

Moegi smiled widely. "We found you!"

Naruto glanced over at Hinata with a confused expression. "We were lost?" He asked questionably. Hinata returned his stare with an unsure one of her own.

Moegi removed herself from Naruto's body. She remained next him on the ground, sitting back on her lower legs. She tilted her head. "Aren't we playing a game of hide-and-seek?" Moegi asked the two eldest members.

"We are?" Naruto continued to respond in question format.

"Well when we woke up everyone was gone, so we thought it was just a big game of hide-and-seek." Moegi explained. "Right Udon?" He nodded in agreement, adding the wiping of his nostrils in the process.

Hinata's eyes widened. "Gone?" She repeated. Her voice was full of fear and distress. "Everyone? Even Hanabi?"

Moegi and Udon both nodded together in unison. "You guys, Konohamaru, Inari and your brother were all gone when we woke up this morning." Udon told them. He sniffed before continuing. "So we thought you guys were playing a massive game of hide-and-seek and made us the finders!"

"You're the first ones we've found!" Moegi laughed. She smiled as she walked over to Hinata, who was still seated on the ground. Her eyes were completely full of worry, but Moegi was too immature to have noticed. She was too focus on the pretty blue flower that decorated Hinata's pretty face. "I like your flower Hinata."

"Thank you." She answered standardly. She looked over at Naruto with upset eyes. Naruto stared back. He understood exactly what Hinata's worry was. He gave her a reassuring smile, as bright as the sun in the sky.

"Don't worry Hinata!" The blonde boy kindly responded. "She's probably having fun with the rest of them!" Naruto told her. "We can go look for her if you want."

Hinata nodded. "I would like that." She answered honestly, getting up to her feet. Naruto followed in pursuit. Once on his feet, he raised his arms above his head to stretch. As he leaned towards the sky, his body rose with it, removing his feet a couple inches above the ground. It appeared that even when he didn't mean to, the boy would fly. It was definitely his constantly happy disposition that helped.

Hinata scanned what she could see. It was evident that she was worried. She really wanted to believe that Hanabi was out there safe and sound having a wonderful time with everyone, but something in her gut made her feel unsure about what Naruto had said. All she knew was that she needed to see her sister and fast.

Naruto's feet returned from the ground as his stretch ended. He smiled over at Hinata, but frowned when he saw how hurt she looked. He knew they had to find her sister soon, and he knew Hinata probably wouldn't be able to stay too strong for very long.

"Okay!" Naruto announced, gaining everyone's attention. All eyes were focused on the blonde preteen. He smiled as he looked over his small group. "We'll split up in groups and find the others!" He told them. "We'll find them better if we go searching through the sky. So I'll take Hinata with me, and Moegi and Udon, you guys wait for Sakura to come back, and use her to help your search."

"Aye-aye!" Udon said, sneezing after he had finished.

"Awe!" Moegi groaned. She ran over to Hinata and grabbed her hand. "But I want to go with Hinata." She whined. Hinata stood there, smiling, allowing Moegi to do whatever she wanted to her. She felt honored to be wanted, but in truth, she'd rather be partnered with Naruto.

Naruto smiled. He went over and knelt down besides the red-haired child. "Don't worry Moegi," He said gently. "We'll meet up again later and re-group. You can be partnered with Hinata next." He told her.

"Promise?" The girl asked, sticking out her pinky at Naruto. He nodded and gripped her finger with his own.

"Promise."

"'Kay!" The girl smiled. She ran back over to Udon and grabbed his hand, forcing him to turn around unstably. "We'll see you guys later!" Moegi screamed behind herself as she raced back to their tree house. Udon struggled to follow behind. He attempted to wave his own goodbye, but Moegi gave him one last tug in efforts to speed him forward. In a few short minutes, the two disappeared from sight.

Hinata looked over at Naruto, who was already staring at her. He smiled gently as he held out his hand towards her. "Don't worry Hinata, I swear to you that we'll find her."

His eyes looked so honest and so sure that she instantly believed him. A smile came across her face. She nodded, to show Naruto that she understood. She took his hand. It was bigger than her's, and really warm. It made her feel safe and assured.

Naruto used his abilities to lift them both off the ground. The higher they got, the tighter Hinata's grip was. No matter how many times she had previously flown, her feet off the ground was the most unstable thing felt. She looked at Naruto. His yellow locks were moved with the wind, just as her own hair was. It just seemed to suit him more, in Hinata's opinion. Naruto moved his head to make eye contact with Hinata. He smiled. She blushed, and looked down in embarrassment. No matter how many glances she stole at him, once their eyes met, something changed.

* * *

Hinata's feet finally touched land. There was a large body of water in front of her. It looked like a large lake. The sound of a soft flowing current filled the arena. Naruto titled it 'Mermaid Lagoon', which was questionable, since there was no mermaid in sight. The air was moist and so was the grassland beneath her bare toes. It gave it a mossy, damp feel. Naruto stepped down from the skies besides her.

"You okay?" He asked, as if he were just checking in with her. Hinata nodded and smiled at him. Together they headed for the water. Naruto was the first to get down on his knees by the edge of the lake, while Hinata followed in pursuit.

Hinata peeked her head forward towards the water. She only could see fish and other sea creatures, but no mermaids. "Are you sure that they're here?" She asked, leaning back upright.

Naruto just smiled. "Watch this." He said. He patted the water three times quickly with his hand and waited.

"Naruto, what did you-"

"Shh!" Naruto hushed her. "They won't come if they hear you." Hinata closed her mouth and kept silent. She stared back into the water. A few seconds went by, but when one is waiting those seconds start feel like minutes.

Hinata looked back at Naruto. Her expression was doubtful and unsure. It was the complete opposite of Naruto's who was just smiling and beaming with confidence. She was greatly fighting the urge to speak, due to the warning Naruto had given her. Still, as of the moment she was truly beginning to question whether or not they actually existed. She sighed, and opened her mouth to speak.

"Look Hinata!" Naruto said excitingly. His right pointer finger was fixed towards the water as he whole body was leaning towards it. Hinata was hesitant, but leaned in right besides the blond boy. The image that she saw made her eyes widen.

The females were swimming together in a whirlpool type motion. Their hair flowed with their movement in the water and if looked into with intent, a shell bikini and an image of a scale-covered tail could be seen as a part of them. Hinata continuously blinked. It was an involuntary act she did, to help her believe what she is seeing.

As they got closer to the water Hinata started to shift backwards, completely getting up and backing away from the lake in the end. Unlike Naruto who stayed there smiling. The first mermaid to appear did so right in front of Naruto face. She had eyes the matched the water she was in, and long beautiful flowing bleach blonde hair. Her face was so circular and attractive, Hinata almost blushed just by looking at her. Naruto lifted himself up only a little to give her space, but she soon closed the gap, placing her nose on top of his own and moving it side to side. It was nuzzle. They were nuzzling! Hinata's eyes widened at the sight, and a feeling of insecurity and tiny bit of anger made an appearance into her personality.

The mermaid pulled herself away from the boy and stared into his eyes. She smiled a beautiful, genuine smile. "Hello Naruto."

Naruto smiled back. "Hi Ino." A flirtatious giggle was given from the blonde mermaid, which made Hinata feel even more uncomfortable. Seconds later another mermaid with a little below shoulder length red-hair and glass spectacles that covered her equally vibrant red eyes.

"Hi Naruto." She said politely, with a soft smile. Naruto grinned as he shifted his position over to her. The red-haired mermaid leaned up as Naruto leaned down. Again, their noses nuzzled. Both girls, the blonde one in the water and the human on land watched the two in slight discomfort. When the nuzzling ceased, Naruto spoke.

"Hey Karin." He greeted. Karin gave him a playful wink, which seemed completely harmless to Naruto, but the other two girls held their breath at the action.

"Coming in for a dip?" Karin asked, doing her best to flirtatiously lure him in. She grabbed onto his arm and slowly made her hand down towards his. She held it there like it belonged there. Naruto shrugged.

"Maybe later." He answered kindly, though in truth he hadn't really been feeling the urge to swim right now.

"Please Naruto. You promised!" The blonde one chimed in, taking Naruto's other hand, but this time interlocking their fingers. "You haven't swam with us in so long." She squeezed his hand and batted her eyes. Hinata was stunned with how forward they both her, and somewhat disappointed that Naruto was allowing this all to happen.

"Well..." Naruto started, his voice was hesitant but it appeared to Hinata that he was starting to lean towards the mermaids advances. It began to seem like he had forgotten that she was even there, until she heard his voice say her name. "I have to help my friend Hinata right now, so I can't."

Hinata's eyes made contact with Naruto. He was smiling softly at her. It made her pleased that he would refuse a fun time with those girls to provide help for her. The two fish ladies frown in the water.

"Awwww." They whined together. Naruto turned his attention back towards the water. He seemed to be scanning it.

"Where's Matsuri?" Naruto questioned. Hinata did her best to keep her composure. Was there really another one?

"Who?" The blonde, Ino inquired. Her tone was clearly playful and the smug smile on her face seemed to accompany it just fine. Naruto gave her a look, which apparently sparked something in Ino's memory. "Oh, Matsuri, our sister." She said turning to Karin, as if she were explaining it to her.

"Oh, well..." Karin started glancing blandly over at Ino. The two gave the other a weary look before flashing a cheeky smile back in Naruto's direction. "She's in the water, if you want you can come and see her."

Naruto smiled. He was a nice guy, but he could obviously see what they were trying to get him to do, and it was evident to Hinata as well.

"Maybe next time." He answered, careful of his words that there would be no offense taken. He glanced back at Hinata, triggering a forgotten thought. His head whipped back around to the two exotic creatures. "By the way, have you two seen Konohamaru, Inari, another tall boy or a little girl running past here?"

The two mermaids exchanged a lost look. Ino shook her head, while Karin responded to it with a shrug and confused expression.

"No, sorry." Ino spoke first. "I haven't seen them. Though the "tall boy" you mentioned, I'm quite curious to meet." Ino giggled to her sister. Karin responded with a flirtatious reaction of her own. Hinata stared with shock. The two girls looked no older than her and yet they were so brazen with their sexual intent towards other boys. It awed her.

"What about the little girl?" Naruto inquired.

"Little girl, huh?" Karin repeated, showing a thoughtful expression. She shook her head. "I doubt it." She answered. "What does she look like?"

Naruto smiled. He stepped back to give the girls a clear view of Hinata. His hand briefly motioned to her.

"Like her," he told them, "but smaller."

Hinata's eyes scanned back and forth between Naruto and the girls in the water. Though whenever she looked at the girls in the water she felt such an intense discomfort coming from them. Even if their looks weren't particular dirty on the outside, the emotion behind them sent disturbing shivers down Hinata's spine. It was obvious that they didn't approve of her presence.

"Who's she?" Karin snipped.

"She's Hinata." Naruto introduced. Hinata smiled and bowed her head slightly. The two girls just stared, obviously judging. "She's my friend."

"Is she now?" Ino intruded, staring Hinata up and down, examining her. "How come we've never met this friend of yours?" Ino inquired.

Naruto shrugged. "I brought her here last night."

"That must be why the fairies were so festive last night." Karin hushed over at Ino, taking occasional glances at Hinata. Ino nodded.

"Must mean she's awfully special." Ino added sourly.

"So, have you seen her?" Naruto questioned, returning the topic back to its origin.

"I'm sure if we saw such a cute girl like this, we'd remember." Ino commented. Hinata felt the sharp tone in her voice that almost pierced right through her. She placed a weary smile on though, doing her best to maintain her composure. Ino placed a false smile on as well.

"Well, if you do see her," Naruto continued, completely oblivious to the tension around him. "Please tell us."

"Only if you promise to come back soon." Karin compromised cutely. Naruto smiled and nodded.

"Will do." He agreed. "Bye girls." He said, turning his back towards the two half-human fishes. They smiled back, waving with a girly fashion.

"Goodbye Naruto!" They said very choral. Their smiles then darkened when their eyes landed on Hinata. They kept the same expression as she waved them off timidly. It was blatantly clear that they were not fond of her, and to be honest, Hinata was exactly jumping at the chance to be their friend either. She turned and followed Naruto, who was waiting for her with a charming grin.

"You ready to go?" He asked. "We could try the Native's village next."

Hinata nodded. "Mhm." She agreed.

The blonde boy held his hand out, which Hinata graciously accepted. She climbed up on his back and they once again headed out on their journey through the sky.

Usually Hinata would look up as Naruto took her towards the sky. Her eyes would land either on the sky above, or on Naruto's sunny face. This time, however, she couldn't help but look at the ground below her. The ground where she believed Hanabi to be, all alone. Hopefully, and most likely, she was with someone, but there was an instinct in Hinata's stomach that wouldn't believe that.

Hinata could only imagine how scared her sister was. She was probably cold or hungry, and lonely.

"Neverland's not a scary place, Hinata." Naruto assured her. Hinata looked at him in awe. Was she speaking out loud, or was he just that in tune with her? "And you want to know a secret? It's not that big either!" He said, grinning so big and cheesy. Hinata couldn't help but giggle.

"Thank you Naruto."

"Huh? For what?"

There was so much to thank him for. But right now, Hinata decided just to keep it simple. She rested her head on the back of his neck. "For helping me." She whispered quietly, her breath almost tickling the back of his neck.

"I'll always be here to help you Hinata." He responded, just as softly. "Forever."

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